Marshall County Highway Superintendent, Jason Peters discussed the need for more repairs on bridges during the commissioners meeting Monday morning.
Peters said following the flood of 2018 the County Council appropriated $1.5 million out of the Rainy Day Fund for emergency and other critical repairs. While the highway department was able to use a substantial amount of the funds provided there is still $600,000 available.
Peters said due to scheduling conflicts with contractors, the extended time needed for permitting through IDEM, DNR and Army Corp of Engineers and environmental and overall studies needed, several of the bridge repair projects have been delayed.
The Highway Superintendent told the commissioners the county Bridge Inspection was not too far out from the flood so they decided to wait until the normal bridge inspections were completed to continue with repairs.
On Monday Peters presented a list of 12 county bridges that need repairs. He said the estimated cost is significant and he’d like to use the remaining $600,000 plus to begin getting repairs done to the bridges. Peters said some of the bridges are scheduled for replacement in the next few years so he doesn’t want to invest a lot of money into a bridge that will be replaced soon. He also said the repairs could extend the life of the bridges for 10 years.
Bridges on the list include:
Bridge #1 is on Ule Trail north of U.S. 6. The pre-cast box beam is cracked and is listed for replacement in 2022. Estimated cost of repairs is $15,000.
Bridge #5 is on Tamarack north of 1st Road. It is listed for replacement in 2022 but federal funding would put it off to 2026. He suggested making the necessary repairs now and extend the life of the bridge for 10 years. Estimated cost is $35,000.
Bridge # 9 is on Queen Road also north of 1st Road. The abutment wall is deteriorating. Peters suggested using local funds and replace the bridge with a timber bridge. The overall contract repairs are $15,000.
Bridge # 11 is on Union Road south of U.S. 6 and is currently on the 2019 call for federally funded projects. If awarded Peters wants to move forward with it. If they don’t get awarded for the bridge he suggested another timber bridge.
Bridge #15 is on Tamarack Road north of 3B Road has excessive scour. The most common cause of bridge failures is from floods scouring bed material surrounding bridge foundations. Scour is the engineering term for the erosion of soil surrounding a bridge foundation, piers and abutments. Bridge scour occurs when fast-moving water around a bridge removes sediment from around the bridge foundation, leaving behind scour holes. Peters estimated repairs at $50,000 and said erosion will continue. He also noted it needs a wig wall added.
Bridge #17 is on Sycamore Road north of 3B Road and also has excessive scour and has a repair cost estimate of $50,000.
Bridge #40 is east of Gumwood Road has erosion and the highway superintendent recommended rip-rap to prevent further erosion. The cost estimate is $20,000.
Bridge #56 is on 6th Road east of Grape and has grout erosion under the end bend wall. It is estimate is $15,000 will cover repairs.
Bridge #71 is on Plymouth Goshen Trail east of the Plymouth City limits. The suggested improvements include extending the mud walls and adding rip-rap for $45,000.
Bridge #97 is on 7th Road west of Fir and has scour issues and rip-rap needs to be addressed for an estimated $15,000.
Bridge #232 is on Randolph Street in Plymouth north of Baker street. It is currently on the 2019 call for Federal projects list.
The final bridge is #308 on 18th Road west of Hickory. Repairs needed include the abutment and backing around the wing wall. The estimated repairs will cost $10,000.
The Highway Superintendent will approach the County Council on Monday and see if they are supportive of his plan to use the remaining funds appropriated for flood repairs in 2018.
