Staddens Bridge Road closed indefinitely; maybe for year

MADISON TOWNSHIP – The high water and logjam that closed Staddens Bridge Road last month was just the beginning of problems for the 43-year-old bridge just east of Newark.

The bridge will be closed indefinitely, probably for at least a year, according to Licking County Engineer Jared Knerr, cutting off a key Madison Township connection from southeastern Licking County to Newark and Ohio 16.

A weakened concrete bridge pile broke into two pieces during removal of the debris, leaving the bridge substructure in critical condition and the bridge deck in poor condition. The cause for the bridge failure appears to be the impact from large trees and debris, according to a study from Gannett Fleming Engineers and Architects.

"For the public, I'd really like to get it back open, but I'm not going to jeopardize the public's safety," Knerr said. "If we could (repair and) open it, we'd have to worry about the same exact thing happening again. Every time, we'd get a big rain, we'd have to close it and clear that out."

Engineering work must be completed, funding sources identified, the current bridge removed and a new bridge constructed before the road can re-open, Knerr told the Licking County Commissioners on Tuesday. He estimated a new bridge would cost at least $2 million.

The bridge, about 250 feet in length, closed April 17 due to high water levels and a logjam under the bridge pushing against the pier. The road has been closed between East Main Street/Marne Road and Sleepy Hollow Road/Weiant Road.

"Any use of that bridge could result in loss of life," Commissioner Tim Bubb said. "We'll never put public safety ahead of convenience."

The bridge, built in 1975 by U.S. Bridge, did not follow all of the design plans for the bridge, according to county officials and the Gannett Fleming study.

Steel cap connection bolts, recovered during the debris removal, were not embedded into the concrete pile, according to the plans, the study said.

"Two of the four bolts were misaligned and in direct conflict with the steel pile casing and thus, were not embedded," the study states.

Also, some of the plans from Jobes-Henderson were changed, county officials said.

Michael Bline, county road and bridge engineer, said, "The set of plans calls for a concrete pier, or cap. There is a change-order in the commissioners' journal. It was changed to two steel 'H' beams."

Bubb said, "This bridge was built cheap in 1975, and now we're paying the price for it. It was carrying too much weight and not proper supports in the river. The legacy is a poorly-built bridge."

The U.S. Bridge web site states the company's name was changed in 1987, to U.S. Bridge. It had been Ohio Bridge.

A telephone message left for U.S. Bridge CEO Dan Rogovin was not returned by presstime.

kmallett@newarkadvocate.com

740-328-8545

Twitter: @kmallett1958