October 19, 2023 |
PHOTO – Carbon County Wyoming image – Bigfoot99 file photo
Two bridges in the northern part of Carbon County need work. The county’s Road and Bridge Coordinator said to expect road closures during construction.
At Tuesday’s Board of Carbon County Commissioners meeting, Road and Bridge Coordinator Kandis Fritz said the bridges on County Road 270 over Difficulty Creek and County Road One over the Medicine Bow River need to be repaired. Fritz said while the bridge on County Road One only needs the road surface replaced, the bridge over Difficulty Creek needs to be torn down and a new bridge put in its place.
Fritz said construction materials for the Medicine Bow River bridge could take up to six months to arrive.
The road and bridge coordinator said her crews do not have the time to tackle the projects in-house. Fritz asked the board to allow her to solicit bids from contractors to complete both projects at once.
Commissioner John Johnson said he agreed with the idea of hiring a construction firm to handle such a complex task as building a bridge.
Commissioner Johnson said a brand-new bridge will cost a lot of money. Fritz said in the current market, a replacement bridge or culvert could cost upwards of $350,000.
Fritz said she is still investigating whether a concrete culvert or a new bridge is the best option for crossing Difficulty Creek.
Commissioner Travis Moore asked Fritz what type of road surface the Medicine Bow River bridge uses. Fritz said the bridge has gravel on it now. The road and bridge coordinator said if the materials are available, she would like to replace the stone with sheets of metal. Fritz said the current road surface is thicker than what was originally planned for and negatively affecting the bridge’s weight limit.
Fritz said she is likely to shut down access to the bridges once construction begins. The road and bridge coordinator said erecting a temporary river crossing is too costly when alternative routes exist to bypass both build sites.
Commissioner Johnson said he supports the plan to replace the decking on the Medicine Bow River bridge. The commissioner said performing maintenance on the bridge now is a better use of taxpayer money than paying for a replacement bridge in the future.
The board authorized Fritz to seek bids for the project.
Fritz said work is unlikely to begin before next summer. The road and bridge coordinator said the project is too early in development to know how long construction will take.
