A bridge closing in northern Marion County in early April will impact residents, commuters, school bus routes and first responders.
The south bridge on Williamsburg Road is slated to close on April 2 for a year minimum after efforts to convince federal inspectors to keep it open failed, according to District 2 Supervisor Terry Broome.
The bridge will be the second to close on the road, with the north bridge having been shut off to traffic in late February. The bridge, built in the 1960s, is one of 53 wood-pile bridges facing inspection and closure in Marion County because of new federal mandates.
Broome said it’s one of the heaviest trafficked areas in his beat and that there are many chicken houses nearby that will have to take detours. They’ll have to use Allen Road, Robbins Road or New Union Road to Gates Road or Mississippi 35, he said.
Kent Robbins, who lives on Robbins Road and also owns property along Williamsburg Road, said he is angered by the closings.
“I’m going to have to go over to 35 and go down and back up,” he said. “I’ve got to go around either way I go. It doesn’t make any sense.”
Robbins said he sold land in the right-of-way for one of the bridge projects several years ago and is frustrated that the bridges haven’t been replaced. He also raised safety concerns with the lengthy detours that will now be in place.
“I hope we don’t have a fire up here,” he said. “It would be a long way for them to come. It’s a mess. My brother has chicken houses, and he’ll have to go all the way around.”
Broome said he understands residents’ frustration. He said the bridge has been approved for rebuilding, at an estimated cost of more than $300,000, for more than 2 ½ years, but they county has not received the federal funds to do so.
He said federal funding looks better this year than in years’ past and that this bridge is second on the list.
Broome said he tried to convince federal officials of the bridge’s importance, but they’ll cancel any chance of federal funding if he leaves it open.
“The north bridge is already closed, but it didn’t have the impact that this one is going to have on residents,” he said. “One of the major things it will impact is the county school bus routes. It will have a tremendous addition to the routes with them having to come all the way up to it, go out, turn around and come back.”
He said they’ve already repaired one of the bridges in his beat that had been closed, on Ebenenzer Road, and contractors are supposed to fix a bridge on River Road next week.
But those were more minor repairs that only cost a few thousand dollars per bridge. The Williamsburg Road south bridge, though, would cost $150,000 just to repair enough to open partially.
Broome said the schools, first responders and law enforcement were being notified, and he’s also visited residents about it.
“It was supposed to have been closed on Feb. 28, but I haven’t done it yet. I’ve tried everything to keep it open, but it has failed,” he said. “I’ve tried every avenue there is – so there is nothing I can do but close it. It is a federal mandate that I close it.”
County officials will bring the signs to post next week and then place barricades and dirt on the bridge to ensure its closure by April 2. Signs will point drivers to detours before they reach the bridge.
Pictured Above: District 2 Supervisor Terry Broome looks over the south bridge on Williamsburg Road Wednesday. Federal inspectors have ordered the wooden-pile structure closed, and Marion County plans to do so April 2. Plans to replace the bridge have been delayed because of a lack of federal funds, despite the project being approved. | Photo by Mark Rogers
