County officials are reminding area residents and travellers to be prepared for the summer-long closure of the Main Street bridge here, beginning July 4.
Wellington County construction manger Mark Eby says the rehabilitation and reconstruction project is necessary due to deterioration of the concrete deck of the bridge, as well as the deterioration of the concrete box storm sewer that runs under the sidewalk on the north side of Main Street from the bridge to FS Partners.
“The bridge requires rehabilitation to maintain the asset and not let it deteriorate any further, which in turn costs more money for a rehabilitation or a full replacement,” stated Eby in a June 27 email.
Because there is insufficient room on the bridge to maintain a lane of traffic while the bridge is rehabilitated and provide a safe and efficient work environment, the bridge will be closed to traffic beginning on July 4 until it is completed around Thanksgiving.
Eby notes there will be one sidewalk maintained as much as possible throughout the rehabilitation work. There will be times when the sidewalk will be closed due to the nature of the work that is being completed and it would not be safe for pedestrians to cross the bridge. These closures will be short in duration, one to a few days at a time.
Eby states maintaining one lane for traffic throughout the project would increase the overall cost of the bridge work and also extend the duration of the work by one or two months.
“The traffic control system would have to be tied to the existing lights at the corner of Wellington Roads 11 and 8 and the overall functioning of the intersection would be poor and there would be long-duration [red-lights] to allow for the traffic to cross the bridge,” he explained.
The aged concrete box storm sewer on the north side of the street has been a maintenance issue for a number of years and it requires replacement. As it is right under the sidewalk, when a portion of it fails it recreates uneven sidewalk conditions that are unsafe for pedestrians to use. Minor repairs have been completed until the right time occurred for replacement.
“That time is now, since the road will be closed for the bridge work,” Eby states.
The storm sewer on the north side of the road will be removed entirely and the storm sewer on the south side of the road will be removed and replaced with a larger pipe system to convey all of the storm water from the county’s right of way, the township’s side streets and the storm water management pond for the industrial park. The outlet will remain on the south side of the bridge, which also ensures the storm outlet cannot erode the bridge footings and abutments.
“Since the county is completing the bridge and storm sewer work it was the most appropriate time for the township to complete upgrades on the side streets that connect to Main Street. All of the township work will occur at the same time as the county’s work,” said Eby.
“This makes the most efficient use of the road closure.”
The road will be completely closed at the bridge to all traffic. East of the bridge to the intersection will remain open as much as possible to allow access to the parking lot, trail and fire station. From the bridge to Industrial Drive will be open to local access only. All businesses that are within this section will be open and accessible. Detours will be set up and signed to direct traffic around the construction zone.
