Schweitzer bridge gets ITD funding

SANDPOINT — About $3.4 million was awarded to Sandpoint and Ponderay for the Schweitzer Cutoff Road bridge that spans the two cities as its borders. The funds will replace the bridge that was put on weight restrictions in late 2015.?Dan Coonce, federal aid area engineer for Local Highway Technical Assistance Council, said Sandpoint and Ponderay officials met with the Idaho Transportation Department board and expressed the urgent need to replace the Schweitzer Cutoff Road bridge. Last week, the bridge was an agenda item for the regular council meeting for ITD for the Statewide Transportation Improvement Program.?"After their pitch to the council, our council agreed they would find available funding for that," Coonce said. "It was pretty quick in the range of federal aid."?The bridge was inspected in 2013 and was rated a 76, which Coonce said is a good rating for a bridge. ?In 2015, the bridge was inspected again and it was rated a four. In late October, the city received a letter from the Idaho Transportation Department that weight restrictions were required for the bridge at 6.3 tons per axle.?Coonce said there is not a single reason for the bridge deterioration or the drop in the rating. Different people inspected the bridge during the last two inspections and he thinks the last one was looked at with "a fresher set of eyes."?"I think it's just at its extended life," Coonce said. "There's not one thing you could probably say that triggered this. It's just a multitude of things that probably happened to the structure itself."?The city contacted LHTAC when it received the letter, looking for funding opportunities, Coonce said. In December, the cities approached the LHTAC council for emergency funding, and they approved moving the project forward to ITD. Coonce said getting funding approved in two months is lightning fast for federal funds. Normally an extensive application process is required for federal funds, and LHTAC ranks them based on priority and need.?"This didn't even go through that process because of the emergency issue," Coonce said. "We couldn't go through that process because it would have extended it out, maybe a year or two."?Currently, the project is in the design phase and agreements are being made between the state and the cities, with the lead agency as Sandpoint, Coonce said. ?The design is partially done which gave the project a slight edge, he added. ?There are also the field surveys, the environmental field reviews, and about 90 percent of the material testing has already been completed, helping expedite the funding process. ?He said changes may come to the actual design of the bridge, where they will look at all the options and types of bridges for the overall cost and to expedite the design.?"We're trying to capitalize on all the work that was done on the previous design and look at this bridge and try to keep the cost down, too," Coonce said. "Keep it as simple as possible, it will be done much, much quicker." ?Coonce said that all environmental work and the design would have to be completed by July to make this construction season, which is fast for the project. ?He said the permitting amendments with the Army Corps of Engineers and water quality certifications still need to be completed; something which was not done during the prior design phase because the project was not that far along.?"It probably won't happen this construction season," Coonce said, adding he hopes to have construction started next summer. "And that is lightning speed with federal aid. The whole idea is it's an emergency."?There are several trucking companies and businesses that use the bridge to connect from their headquarters to U.S. 2/Highway 95. Construction will start in the spring on a project from lower Boyer to upper Boyer. ?Coonce said they are currently clearing trees and doing preparation work for the project.?During construction, traffic may be rerouted. Coonce said the contractor has "a lot of say" in whether to reroute the traffic or phases the project to leave lanes open.