During its construction, the Erie Avenue Bridge (as it was formerly called) was the largest bascule bridge in the world and is now considered to be the second largest.
The Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) agreed in 1989 to cover funding for the bridge which saves Lorain county nearly half a million US dollars per year. The Charles Berry Bridge is one of only three bridges in Ohio that the ODOT will currently fund.
The Charles Berry Bridge is one of the primary methods of transportation between the east and west of Lorain across Black River along with the Loften Henderson Bridge which is also named after a native of Lorain who was awarded the Medal of Honor.