Complex sentence: Local residents griped for decades about tolls on the bridge and, finally, in 1949, the state bought it for $5.6 million, and management was assumed by the Virginia Department of Highways.
Split into simpler sentences: Local residents griped for decades about tolls on the bridge and, finally, in 1949, the state bought it for $5.6 million. Management was assumed by the Virginia Department of Highways.