The 501st PIR was given the task of capturing the locks at La Barquette and capturing or destroying the railroad bridge and the 4 highway bridges along the causeway NW of Carentan....
...by the end of D-Day, the locks had been captured and were well defended...but the Rail bridge and highway bridges were never reached and were still in use by the Germans, who were bringing up reinforcements scross them from Carentan, which the capture or destruction was planned to prevent...
Bruce