Sunday, June 30, 2013
DEFICIENT BRIDGES
Some examples of structurally deficient bridges in the Mahoning and Shenango valleys. The bridges are rated on a 0 to 9 scale for their deck, superstructure and substructure quality. A bridge is considered deficient if it rates a 4 or below in any of the three categories.
MAHONING
Walker Mill Road over Yellow Creek, Boardman, averaging 1,880 vehicles daily, superstructure and substructure, both 4.
Lowellville Road over Yellow Creek, Struthers, averaging 3,000 vehicles daily, superstructure, 4.
Hopkins Road over Anderson Run, Boardman, averaging 1,770 vehicles daily, superstructure, 4.
Four Mile Run Road over Four Mile Run, Austintown, averaging 3,800 vehicles daily, superstructure, 4.
Raccoon Road over Indian Run Creek, Canfield, averaging 1,020 vehicles daily, superstructure, 4.
North Lima Road over Yellow Creek, Springfield Township, averaging 2,460 vehicles daily, substructure, 4.
Division Street Bridge over the Mahoning River, Youngstown, averaging 1,200 vehicles daily, 360 of them trucks, superstructure, 4, to be replaced next year.
TRUMBULL
Olive Street over the Mahoning River, Niles to McDonald, (closed since October 2009 and scheduled for replacement next year), averaged 2,000 vehicles a day when open, superstructure, 2, deck, 4.
Chestnut Ridge Road over Little Yankee Creek, Hubbard, averaging 1,050 vehicles daily; deck and superstructure, 3. This bridge has a 3-ton vehicle weight limit and is scheduled for replacement in 2015 or 2016.
Anderson-Morris Road over Squaw Creek between Upper and Lower Girard Lakes, Liberty Township, averaging 600 vehicles daily, superstructure, 3, substructure, 4. It is scheduled for replacement in 2016.
Myron Street over Mud Run, Hubbard, averaging 1,840 vehicles daily, deck and superstructure, 4.
The two-lane Northwest Bridge over the Mahoning River in Warren that connects Tod and Mahoning avenues and carries an average of 11,000 vehicles a day has a 4 rating on its deck.
Main Street over Walnut Creek, Cortland, averaging 5,000 vehicles daily, deck, substructure and superstructure, 4. This bridge will be replaced next year.
COLUMBIANA
Waterford Road (Main Street), carrying an average of 1,922 vehicles daily over Bull Creek in New Waterford, deck and superstructure, 4. Next year, the superstructure will be replaced with pre-cast concrete box beams and some maintenance work will be done on the substructure.
Newell Toll Bridge over the Ohio River, East Liverpool, Ohio, to Newell, W.Va., averaging 2,000 vehicles daily, superstructure, 4, 10-ton vehicle weight limit imposed.
LAWRENCE
Mahoning Avenue Viaduct over the Shenango River in New Castle, Pa., averaging 8,583 vehicles daily, substructure and superstructure, 4. Design work is starting for a preservation and rehabilitation project, but there is currently no construction money for it and no estimated start date for the project.
West Washington Street Bridge over the Shenango River in New Castle, averaging 4,218 vehicles daily, deck, super and substructure, 4. Same work status as Mahoning Avenue Viaduct.
Harbor-Edinburg Road Bridge over the Shenango River in Union Township outside New Castle, averaging 7,345 vehicles daily, deck and superstructure, 4. Same work status as New Castle bridges.
MERCER
West Middlesex (Pa.) Viaduct carrying state Route 318 over the Shenango River, averaging 4,868 vehicles daily, 40-ton weight limit for tractor-trailer trucks because of their broader weight distribution, reduced to 33 tons for other trucks. Bridge is scheduled to be replaced in 2016. (It has a fracture-critical design similar to that of the Skagit River Bridge that collapsed in May, but unlike the Skagit bridge, which had trusses over the road, the West Middlesex Viaduct has deck trusses under the road. Fracture critical means the bridge is vulnerable to collapse if a vital part is severely damaged.)
State Route 18 (Sharon Road) Bridge over the Shenango River Reservoir in Clark, Pa., averaging 5,197 vehicles daily, deck and superstructure, 4, scheduled for deck and superstructure replacement in 2014.
Source: Federal Highway Administration, National Bridge Inventory