Several people attended the open forum about the two proposed bridge projects in Greene County last night.
It was the public’s chance to ask Iowa Department of Transportation staff questions and concerns about the West Beaver Creek bridge and the overpass bridge east of Grand Junction which are slated to be replaced in 2018.
Assistant District Engineer for the Iowa Department of Transportation Tony Gustafson tells Raccoon Valley Radio that the total cost for both projects is $7.3 million with about $6.7 million going into the overpass bridge.
He states that there will be some changes to both existing bridges to make them safer. On the overpass bridge, Gustafson points out they will be widening the bridge from 24-feet to 44-feet so that larger farm vehicles can travel safely and if a vehicle breaks down, they can safely pull off onto the shoulder. Another safety feature is eliminating the cable guardrails that are at each end of the bridge.
Gustafson talks about why he believes cable guardrails are a hazard.
“The best thing that’s not a hazard is not have anything there and just if there’s a vehicle goes off and they can just kind of drive down the slope and gets towed out later. There’s always a chance of hitting that guardrail and get rebounded back.”
As far as the design, Gustafson comments that they will incorporate parts of the Lincoln Highway into the structure.
Grand Junction resident Bob Ausberger, with the Lincoln Highway Association, says he’s excited for the Lincoln Highway to be apart of the new bridge design in the City.
“Well, we were really excited that they had decided to do that. I think there’s going to be an awful lot of people that see those Lincoln Highway images and realize that is at least the corridor of the Lincoln Highway.”
As for the West Beaver Creek bridge east of the other bridge, Gustafson says they will be replacing that 120-foot bridge with a reinforced, triple box culvert which is another safety feature for motorist because there will not be any guardrails and it adds to the capacity for water that flows through there.
He notes that both projects are scheduled to start as late as 2018 and both are anticipated to be done within one year of construction.