NEW PALESTINE — One of the rare timber bridges in Indiana, located on Bittner Road is currently shutdown as county officials plan to make repairs, which could take some time.
With a unique arching frame and wood design, some of the things that make the bridge one of a kind have caused an issue.
“Oh she’s a beauty, but she comes with drama,” County Engineer Gary Pool said of the wooden structure.
Due to the design of the bridge, which was built in 2007 to keep an historical charm in the area, county officials felt it was best to close the bridge until they can make it safe.
“The bridge is OK, but it bounces some now,” Pool said. “I don’t want vehicles driving on it when it bounces because that could cause someone to drive into someone else because the bridge is not functioning properly.”
Pool noted that the bridge isn’t going to fall down, but it has a “bong” element to it, and that is not acceptable.
“There’s like all these 4-by-18 wood beams stacked side by side, all the way along running the way traffic goes, and when they are not pressed together like they should be, that’s a problem,” Pool said. “When one gets loose, they slide and the whole thing moves, so I’ve got to get those things pressed tightly together again.”
Officials will repair the issue then reinforce the problem with long lag bolts, with the hope it doesn’t happen again.
“But, before we do that, I’m going to get all the asphalt scraped off the top of the bridge and check all the wood and make sure we don’t have any rotting problems or anything,” Pool said.
It means the bridge will be shut down for a while and might not get fixed until the fall due to the fact the county must get permits from the railroad company which runs under the bridge.
“The bridge is OK for pedestrians to walk over, and they can hold any kind of running or go-kart race on it like they have planned, but I can’t have a county bridge that moves four to five inches every time a heavy truck rolls over it,” Pool said. “It’s not safe.”
Despite the beauty and historical nature of the bridge, Pool says he wishes it wasn’t made of wood and was structured like most bridges, with steel and concrete.
“Wood bridges always have this kind of drama,” Pool said. “The people who designed the bridge and the historians who wanted it, they don’t think about things like how it will hold up, so we got what we got.”
New Palestine council member Ryan Hartley, who also works for the county highway department and checks county bridges, was the one who noticed the bridge was amiss. A couple of weeks ago, he was driving over the bridge and saw a patch of asphalt flying in the air and knew that wasn’t normal, so he decided to have county officials inspect the bridge, which has now been closed since late last week.
“We sent a patch crew there, and then a few days later I was heading back home following a council meeting and went across the and noticed a longitudinal crack along the side and it was pretty wide,” Hartley said. “I’m a road guy so I noticed it and knew right away, that was not normal.”
Hartley once again told county officials, who sent other officials, including Pool to take a closer look at the bridge. Last week Pool and others realized the bridge was indeed in need of repair due to multiple contributing factors causing issues.
“For one it’s made of wood, a railroad runs under the bridge causing it to shake, and neighborhoods are being built in the area and that’s bringing in multiple heavy trucks in that roll over the bridge,” Pool said. “All those things conspired together to knock a couple of those transverse (wood) members loose.”
County officials are looking to possibly do some type of one-way traffic on the bridge if reports come back and say it’s OK to do that.
“We’re thinking maybe add a one-way light on a trailer there that will run for two minutes one way, then two minutes the other,” Pool said. “We’re just in the process of having all the calculations checked out.”
In the meantime, drivers will have to continue to find an alternative route to get into the Town of New Palestine. Drivers can either go a block or two east or west or use Gem Road as a way to come in and out of town.
