By Jennifer Solis
Correspondent
October 30, 2009 03:52 am WEST NEWBURY —The Rocks Village Bridge could be closed for a year if a state renovation plan for the structure is approved, reported Department of Public Works director Gary Bill. The bridge, which contains the oldest movable span among all bridges under state purview, also provides daily access to Merrimac students coming across the Merrimack River to Pentucket Middle and High schools. Bill updated selectmen this week on a recent meeting at the Merrimack Valley Planning Commission that included Massachusetts Highway Department representatives and officials and historical groups from Amesbury, Haverhill, Merrimac and West Newbury. Selectmen Chairman Glenn Kemper said if the project goes forward, it could mean a significant hike in transportation costs for the school district. "Obviously, we'd need to talk to the School Committee," he said. Selectman Tom Atwood, a former chairman of the Pentucket Board, agreed, noting that the district's transportation contract allows the bus company to issue a surcharge if the bridge is closed for any reason. In addition, the lengthened bus route will require drivers to pick up Merrimac students earlier in the morning in order for them to get to school on time. And some school buses might need to be stored across the river in West Newbury while the project was ongoing, he added. A basic renovation to the bridge would cost $7 million, the state highway department has determined. Local officials wanted any repair to include new sidewalks across the span. But that upgrade would cost an additional $3 million that the state says it just doesn't have. A compromise that Bill is pushing involves an additional $1 million to upgrade to a lighter, longer-lasting fiberglass material. This upgrade would prime the renovated bridge for the addition of sidewalks in the future should alternative funding sources become available. Bill explained that in order to qualify for federal funding, the project must meet specific weight-bearing standards that are calculated based on a fully loaded bridge and sidewalks. The $7 million renovation has a maximum life expectancy of 15 years, but the fiberglass upgrade would likely double that figure, he noted. The project is currently listed near the top of an accelerated program of bridge repairs, and the highway department seeks a letter of support for the plan from selectmen within 30 days. Any substantial change to the plan, such as the addition of sidewalks, could drop the project off the accelerated list, Bill said. "The longer this goes on, the faster the bridge deteriorates. It's pretty scary," he said. If approved, the job would go out to bid one year from now. The plan would be to close the bridge right after school got out in June and reopen it a year later just before school resumed in the fall. Located adjacent to the Rocks Village National Register Historic District, the bridge has been a major Merrimack River crossing since at least the early 18th century. "It is one of the earliest riveted ... metal trusses yet identified in the MassHighway inventory and the earliest known surviving work discovered to date of the Boston Bridge Works, an important and extremely prolific Massachusetts bridge-building firm active from the 1870s through the 1930s," according to the MassHighway Web site. It is one of only 44 movable bridges identified in the MassHighway database.
—
Copyright © 1999-2010 cnhi, inc.