Schweitzer Cutoff will get new bridge
SANDPOINT — Funding has been found to replace the Schweitzer Cutoff Road bridge over Sand Creek, Public Works Director Kody Van Dyk said. The bridge spans between Sandpoint and Ponderay as Sand Creek is the city line.
The Local Highway Technical Assistance Council governing board voted to accelerate the project earlier this month. Van Dyk said Sen. Shawn Keough helped the city secure the funding.
Van Dyk said city officials do not know how much funding they will receive or when they will receive it. He said the council and the Idaho Transportation Department are working together on the funding.
“They trade between entities depending on when projects are ready to go to bid,” Van Dyk said.
The funding will cover just the costs of the bridge work and Van Dyk said they are unsure if the completed bridge design will be used. He said they may want to find a quicker way to fix the bridge. With the shorter holiday week, Van Dyk said it is unlikely he will know anything more until after Christmas.
“As soon as the LHTAC folks know something, they will let me know,” Van Dyk said.
The condition of the bridge deteriorated to the point where weight restrictions were imposed following a July inspection by the ITD. Sandpoint and Ponderay officials were notified in late October by ITD that the weight limit of the bridge is 6.3 tons per axle.
Van Dyk said the city does not know why the bridge deteriorated so quickly. Two years ago it was rated at a 76, and currently it is rated at four. Van Dyk said there are cracks in the girders, cracks across the supports and on the underside of the bridge. Built in 1975, the bridge had a daily average traffic use of 8,200 in 2010, the most recent year data is available on a national bridge database.
Dan Coonce, federal aid area manager for the Local Highway Technical Assistance Council, said the bridge rating was dropped because of wear and tear and because the bridge inspectors are conducting more rigorous checks after the bridge failure in Minnesota in 2007. He said the bridge was ineligible for funding until it dropped below a 50 rating. LHTAC helps local jurisdictions obtain funding for transportation projects
“Bridge inspection reports have significantly changed because they’re looking at it more stringently as opposed to two years ago,” Coonce said in November. “With the amount of stress each one gets day in and day out, it adds to that as well.”
Van Dyk said the city applied for federal funds in 2002, through LHTAC. The funds would have covered the project on Schweitzer Cutoff road between Boyer and Sand Creek. They were awarded the funds, however, the project was supposed to start in 2016 and the only funds that remain will cover a shorter section of Schweitzer Cutoff Road between North Boyer Road and North Boyer Avenue. The engineer’s estimate was about $1.4 million.
In 2014, city officials realized the funds were no longer available through LHTAC and applied for the federal Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery grant, under a national infrastructure improvement program, but did not receive the funding, Van Dyk said. The estimate during the design of the project was $3 million just for the bridge.
Van Dyk said that not all trucks are being impacted, and the drivers know what their weight limits are. Trucks are driving down Boyer to Larch Street, or go to West Bronx Road, to connect to the highway. Cars will not be impacted, however, traffic will increase in some areas. The trucks can make the roundabout on Larch Street.