According to local elders, the construction of the Semenov Bridge may have begun around 1871. In 1868, the Turkestan sapper company started work on developing the Boom Gorge, and then local residents joined them.
Wheeled vehicle traffic was organized in 1871, and in 1926, according to reports, the first car crossed the bridge. The old bridge served until around 2009.
The chief engineer of DEP No. 32, Turatbek uulu Kilychbek, reported that a new bridge was built and put into operation in 2013. “Previously, heavy trucks used the old bridge on the old road, while passenger cars used the internal road. After the new road and bridge were built, most vehicles began to use them. The old Semenov Bridge was left unattended, and the concrete remnants on both sides of the river are still visible,” he noted.
In his notes written in 1856, the Russian explorer Pyotr Semenov-Tyan-Shansky described his impressions of traveling through this region:
“The Boom Gorge is a deadly trap. We could barely make our way along our path, which did not always run along the riverbank, as the sheer cliffs dropped off completely vertically, forcing us to climb up this rocky corridor. To avoid such detours, we crossed the river where possible, battling the swift current that concealed huge boulders and threatened to sweep us away at any moment.”
