Published: October 29, 2009 02:31 pm      

Crossing the Erie Canal

Reduced weight limit on bridges has some residents concerned

Questions were raised at two separate Orleans County forums recently regarding the rehabilitation of Erie Canal bridges.

Town of Ridgeway Councilman Jeffrey Toussaint brought to the attention of the town board at its October meeting that residents have been concerned about reduced weight limits and the narrowing of some bridges in the area.

The same concern was raised at the annual Orleans County Farm Bureau meeting Oct. 21 in Albion.

“It’s one of those issues that everyone’s aware of but nobody’s done anything about,” said farm bureau President William Eick.

Nelda Toussaint, a member of the board of directors of the farm bureau, said she has heard concerns that the Knowlesville Road bridge will permanently be a single-lane bridge and posted for less tonnage, which would pose a problem for farmers who have large trucks with heavy machinery traveling through the area.

“Things are becoming a real issue,” she said. Toussaint explained that some vehicles will be turning a 4-mile trip into a 15-mile trip just in order to cross the canal.

Some residents also fear that because some of the canal bridges are seeing reduced weight limits, the Route 63 bridge in Medina will experience an increase in traffic volume, which will bring large trucks carrying heavy machinery down Medina’s main thoroughfare.

According to Lori Maher, New York state Department of Transportation public information officer for Region 4, most of the Erie Canal bridges were built around 1910. At that time, people didn’t anticipate the large volume of traffic and heavy farm equipment that would be crossing over them.

“These canal bridges are old,” she said. And because all of the bridges were built around the same time, “they’re all showing signs of wear and tear at the same time.”

Recently, the DOT engaged in a number of rehabilitation projects on several canal bridges, which Maher described as “just short of full replacement.”

An inspection of the Knowlesville bridge took place in the fall of this year. According to Maher, the floor system was found to be in “very poor condition.”

After renovation efforts to the lift bridge and strict weight calculations, it has been reopened as a single-lane bridge with a weight limit of six tons.

“I don’t think that one was posted before,” said Maher.

The reason for the reduction of traffic flow to a single lane, she said, is that it keeps the vehicles along the wheelpath, where the bridge is best supported.

The Knowlesville bridge is not on the state’s capital project list. “At this time we don’t have any major work planned for the future,” said Maher.

She said that since the DOT now knows the condition of the bridge, it will be looking at it more closely to see what can be done to possibly raise the posting in the future.

As an alternative route, Maher suggested Eagle Harbor Road, which has no weight restrictions.

The Route 98 bridge in Albion was inspected in April of this year, when it was determined that there was serious steel deterioration. Bridge renovations took place during September and October — during which the weight limit was reduced to 6 tons — and traffic was rerouted along Route 387 (Fancher Road).

The bridge was reopened Oct. 20 with a weight limit of 16 tons.

According to Maher, the DOT is going to crunch some more numbers and see if the bridge will be able to hold more weight.

The Gaines Basin Road bridge in Albion is currently closed while it is under construction, and is not scheduled for completion until August 2010, according to Maher. Regarding a weight limit on that bridge, it is anticipated that it will have an R-permit restriction, meaning that trucking companies will have to get a special permit for it.

The Keltel Road bridge in Albion also underwent recent rehabilitation and is now open with a weight limit of 16 tons, according to Maher.

“We have undertaken a lot of projects in recent years” regarding bridgework along the Erie Canal, said Maher.

Both the Ridgeway Town Board and the Orleans County Farm Bureau decided to send communication to the state DOT expressing their concerns with the changes to the Erie Canal bridges.

Contact editor Holly Toal at 798-1400, ext. 8225.