New Bridges Being Built East of Canton
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Construction on the North Canadian River bridge began on September 24th. The original bridge was built in 1966 and has been in commission for 62 years. Both the river bridge and the bridge over the slough east of the river on Highway 51 are being replaced simultaneously.
Construction companies use a bridge rating system to determine how functional bridges are. A nine is brand new, and a one is closed. The North Canadian Bridge has a surface rating of five, the superstructure is rated as a four, and the substructure was also given a four. The bridge over the slough east of the river was given an overall rating of four. Because the condition of both bridges has been deteriorating for so long, a town meeting was called on September 19th to decide what what the best option was. It was determined that both bridges should be replaced.
The timeline for completing both bridges was originally 150 days. The timeline was lowered to 120 days soon after construction started. The contract states that if bridge completion happens 30 days early there will be a 150 thousand dollar bonus. Although bad weather slowed progress, the timeline was once again lowered to 90 days, and is expected to be finished on December 23rd.
The new bridge is being built in 100 foot sections. Five of these sections will make up the 502 foot long bridge, with a clear, 40 foot roadway. The bridge will be supported by four, 60 inch piers that will go down to the bedrock and anchor the bridge in place.
The construction has caused some inconvenience for both local citizens and uninformed travellers. With the bridges being closed many Canton residents have to take detours to get to town. This has also affected bus routes. With buses making their routes earlier, many students who attend Canton Public Schools have been losing sleep in order to catch the bus. Although it is an inconvenience, construction crews are working hard to complete construction. “We appreciate the patience of the people because we know they are having to go around,” Brent Almquist, ODOT division engineer, said.
Canton was also one of six towns chosen for a sidewalk project. ODOT funded the replacement of sidewalks in town.
Janet Sinclair • Oct 18, 2018 at 9:55 am
Great job Taylor. I didn’t know about the rating system or the bonus for the deadline.