BATH

The viaduct that bisects the city is 55 years old, five years older than its expected useful life.

Despite a resurfacing and some repairs made to the structure in 2007, time and weather have taken their toll.

Nate Benoit of Maine’s Department of Transportation told a meeting of officials and residents Wednesday it’s time to replace or renovate the structure.

The viaduct is split into 20 distinct spans. Of those, 12 are concrete, eight are steel. All are deteriorating, but some sections are worse than others, Benoit said.

Because there are gaps between the spans, water has trickled down into the gaps. When the water freezes, it expands, cracking the concrete and weakening the structure.

When the structure was resurfaced in 2007, the transportation department discovered that water and ice had caused structural damage to the piers, or the upright sections of the substructure, as well as significant problems to the layer just below the road surface. Some of the concrete was in danger of falling from the underside of the structure to Leeman Highway below.

So the Department of Transportation added steel reinforcement to protect the surface street from crumbling concrete and resurfaced the road as a temporary fix.

The viaduct was added to a growing list of bridges in Maine badly in need of repair—andratesa4onascaleof 1to9, which is “poor” although still safe to drive on, Benoit said.

Benoit said the budget for the project is $5 million but funding is not yet in place, primarily because bonds approved by voters have not yet gone on the market. By the time the project goes forward, the cost may be greater.

Benoit said that a normal repair or replacement of this type could take two years. He cited the Richmond-Dresden bridge as an example.

But that bridge was a replacement of an existing structure that remained in place while the new bridge was being built, something that is not possible for the Bath viaduct. Because Route 1 is a major artery with no local alternative route, and because Route 1 is heavily traveled during the summer months, MDOT favors a “fast” approach to replacing the viaduct, Benoit said, which would include winter work.

Benoit said he could envision a ninemonth accelerated project, possibly beginning in the fall of 2014 or 2015, to include night work he said would not disturb the neighborhood too much.

The road design calls for a slight widening on the surface and less of a barrier between lanes of traffic, allowing for a wider shoulder.

Jane Morse, who owns many commercial properties downtown, asked if the original plan for the viaduct, to make it four lanes, was still on the table. Benoit said the current plan called for one lane in each direction.

Those who were most concerned were the neighbors whose properties are adjacent to Leeman Highway, including Halcyon Blake, whose property lies between Washington and Middle next to the highway.

Blake pointed out that, as it is now, her property is hit by salt, sand and snow when a snowplow comes through on the viaduct. Benoit said he would keep that concern in mind.

Others said the scope of the project should be expanded to include the deteriorating High Street bridge over the viaduct, as well as the tall, crumbling retaining walls that border Leeman Highway near High Street.

Benoit said that if the city were willing to help fund it, it might be possible to replace all the structures at the same time. The High Street bridge and the retaining wall are the same age as the viaduct.

Other residents were concerned that the summer traffic pattern changes that worked well during the 2007 repairs would be virtually impossible in the snow and ice. Some streets, such as Granite Street, to the south of the viaduct, are on very steep hills and are already difficult to travel in the winter. The 2007 plan, which would permit twoway traffic on these streets, would not work well in winter months.

Even so, a show of hands revealed that almost everyone was in favor of the accelerated approach if traffic detours can be designed safely.

Jay Rohleder of Figg Engineering, the company that built the Sagadahoc Bridge — which opened in 2000 — said he was hoping to make the viaduct more closely resemble the bridge in the design of the piers, and making the spans of the same material.

Other concerns the public aired include the way water drained from the viaduct, which often leaves cars and pedestrians on Leeman Highway drenched during a rainstorm. Rohleder said that it was possible that some of the drainage could be used to water plantings below the structure, and the rest could be drained through the piers into the sewer system.

Benoit said the next public meeting on the project is likely to be held in the fall.

ghamilton@timesrecord.com