Dover Bridge girders coming soon

DOVER — The first of 77 girders for the new Dover Bridge on U.S. Highway 2 should start arriving by the end of the month, project officials say.

The girders are being shipped by rail from Oklahoma to Sandpoint, where they will be off-loaded and put on trucks bound for Dover, said Cory Shepherd of lead contractor Sletten Construction.

The longest girders, which are up to 120 feet long, require three train cars to haul. The McFarland pole yard in Sandpoint is being utilized because there is no storage space at the cramped bridge construction site.

They will arrive every week or so, with the last delivery slated for late November, Shepherd said. Transporting the girders from Sandpoint to Dover will cause traffic delays on Highway 2.

Shepherd expects installation of the girders will flow smoothly after the first one is set.

“After the first time, it will be like clockwork,” he said.

Drilling and blasting of the hillside, work which is being conducted by M.A. DeAtley, is expected to continue for the next six weeks.

Sletten has surmounted a challenge with driving pile on a westernmost pier. Because of the shallow depth of the bedrock there, piles were glancing off and bending. Project officials said 6-foot-deep “rock sockets” were drilled into the bedrock so the piling could find purchase on the north side of the pier.

Meanwhile, patience is wearing out for trespassing in the construction site.

The bike and pedestrian path has been closed west of Chuck Slough because of heavy equipment operations, but that has not stopped people from knocking over signs and passing through the site, even when construction is active.

“It’s definitely a safety issue,” Shepherd said.

Dump trucks are continually backing up to deposit loads and drivers are maneuvering bulky trucks through the narrow corridor, which puts trespassers in harm’s way. The incursions are causing delays, which Mayor Randy Curless said could cause construction to take even longer.

“There’s really no excuse,” added Dover resident and lawmaker George Eskridge said. “People know it’s closed.”

The Bonner County Sheriff’s Office has been advised of the problem and deputies are being asked to help enforce the trail closure, project officials said.