On Tuesday, District staff, two MassDOT representatives (who are on-site), and two representatives from the Contractor (Cianbro – also on-site) fielded questions from the audience.
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| MassDOT's Vince DeAngelo (Resident Engineer) and Rich Horgan (Assistant District Construction Engineer) |
The main topics/concerns brought up were:
• Construction Time – Four years, including removal of the old bridge.
• Traffic Signals – When the bridge project is completed, traffic lights will be in place on both the Haverhill and Groveland side of the bridge. The new traffic lights on both sides will communicate with each other to provide for better traffic flow. MassDOT will also monitor the traffic, in case adjustments to timing loops need to be made.
• New Bridge Design – The new bridge will look like the Comeau Bridge in Haverhill. There won't be any above-road steel trusses (like on the old bridge now) and support structures for the new bridge will come from beneath. You can get a basic idea of the profile of the bridge on this blog’s Groveland/Haverhill Bates Bridge Reconstruction page.
The new bridge will also rise like a drawbridge for river traffic.
• Construction Phases – In-water work will begin by November 15. In-water work can only occur from Nov. 15 - March 1 because of fish populations.
• Safety – There had been some obstruction on the sidewalks recently because Cianbro ran into complications when driving the sheet piling. Police details should solve safety concerns for those who travel over the bridge on foot or in a wheel chair. There will be at least 36 inches for wheelchair access on the bridge sidewalks.
• Roadways – In Groveland, a left turn only lane will be added to minimize traffic jams.
• Boating – The Merrimack will remain open for boaters.
• Discovery of Underwater Cable – Divers discovered the cable about two weeks ago. It is roughly located in the similar location as the original National Grid archive plans depicted. Environmental teams are now meeting to discuss how to properly remove the cable, as it might be oil-filled. It is too early to tell how the cable’s discovery will impact the project’s schedule. A lot of this will depend on the cable being free of oil, as that would be a much simpler removal.
If there are other questions/concerns that were not addressed, let us know!
What will the overhead clearance for boats be? If it will be reduced under the new bridge, boats that now pass under may need to request openings.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the question -- that's what we're here for. The new bridge's height will be identical to the current bridge.
ReplyDeleteWhen will the traffic begin to be disrupted on the Groveland side due to electrical conduit work along with the utlitlies work and how long is it anticipated to last?
ReplyDeleteAccording to MassDOT, some of the underground utility work may start soon--around the end of October/early November, as soon as all the utility poles are relocated. This work will continue until late November and will stop over the winter to avoid trenches without hot mix on them.
ReplyDelete