The Boissoneault Road Bridge - The Real Story

[Henry]

Hi All,

Well, a while back I had put up a note expressing my concerns regarding using the Boissoneault Road as a detour because there was no way I could see a tractor trailer going over that little bridge shown below:

Well, it just so happens, I didn't attend the meeting and was basing my opinion on what I had read - bad idea, I guess, but until recently I didn't know the whole proposal.  When I checked with Bill Ormerod regarding the rumor I had heard that they were asking VTRANs to widen the Boissoneault Road bridge so they could use it as a detour, Bill responded with this answer which certainly makes a lot of sense.

"This is in fact what the selectboard presented to VTRANs when they were here to review Bridge 10 a few weeks ago. The proposed alternate route the state was considering was a regional detour of traffic up Fletcher Road to Swamp Rd, to Huntsville Rd to Main St..
 
By widening the bridge on Boissoneault it does a couple of things...

1) gives us an alternate route around village for the bridge #10 replacement.
2) allowing the state to completely close Rt 104 to replace bridge 10 will reduce the amount of time Main St will be closed.
3) Gives us a permanent alternate route around the village
 
Hope this info is Helpful,
 
Bill"

This certainly makes a lot of sense and I do appreciate Bill taking the time to respond.[/b]

[BCota]

I have access to all detour plans as well as signage and other site restriction details that the contractor must abide by.  will upload tomorrow from work.

[Rev. Elizabeth]

hmmm, as a resident of Boissoneault Rd, I wonder how this is going to effect the traffic, the dust, and how the farm vehicles will manage with the anticipated increase in traffic during a time when they are tilling, plowing, fertilizing and seeding...

There are some very old stone walls under that bridge.  I hope the widening of the bridge doesn't destroy them, or the wild and beautiful nature of that entire area.

[BCota]

Wild idea.....

dependent upon factors such as the structural integrity of transporting a mildly reinforced concrete bridge section that has been in service for nearly 80 years; as well as the length of the current bridge on Boissoneault Rd. and the soil conditions around it,,,what about attempting to recycle the present bridge #10?  Considerations would have to be made with regards to careful partitioning of the deck and beams but it is certainly possible because many precast elements are of a similar size and shape and they transport just fine.  Unlike the new bridge #10 (fabrication was completed recently), it was cast in place with elaborate staging and wooden falsework and prestressing and post-tensioning techniques were not yet commercially available.  this means that most likely small cracks (the excessive rebar reinforcement will contain them) will form in the bottom of the present B.10 if they are not adequately supported during any significant movement.  This would provide access for moisture and would require repair measures (time & $$$).  I would not be overly concerned with the structural capacity of the bridge after placement on Boissoneault Rd. (hypothetically without significant strength reduction due to removal & transport of course) b/c everyone has been driving over it everyday for 80 years and it's safety or adequacy to support loads has never been an issue.  side note:  upon comparison of the new plans it appears that one of the primary reasons for replacement is to gain the apprx'ly two feet presently occupied by concrete balusters on each side of the bridge -- the new rail system I believe is aluminum and is oriented external of the sidewalk and deck in plan view and is attached to the edge of the outermost beam on each side thus creating the affect of a wider deck without occupying any more lateral width of the abutments.  This is only one of multiple time saving considerations that were made in the design and construction planning of the bridge (I was not involved in the design or any of these decisions however it has become clear to me as an observation of the new bridge plans and construction specifications).  end side note.  just the fact that the bridge has lasted this long is indicative of quality craftsmanship, proper proportioning of concrete ingredients (and a bit of luck with ingredient selection as aggregate silica reactivity was not yet tested for), and proper mixing and placing techniques.  Bad concrete is easy to diagnose at relatively early age -- and, unlike some other structural materials, the longer it lasts in good health, the stronger it gets...everyday and forever in most cases as with the new B.10 bridge beams.  Avid watchers of "Life After People" have learned that the Hoover Dam will be one of the last man made relics on planet earth.

Unfortunately, this is all wishfulthinking as it is much too late in the game for such a huge decision (especially one requiring re-assessment of contract value), but that's not to say it wasn't considered.  Quite possibly local residents like the Rev. would not like intrusion of a larger bridge irregardless of its sentimental or historical significance to the town.  Still I wouldn't be surprised if the state attempts to sell, recycle, or reuse the bridge somehow.

$0.02 for a ten dollar word...

[BCota]

Detour Plans, as promised;  copy the link below to your address bar and a "download" button will be located in the center of your screen when the new window opens.  The file is called "B10 Detours" and is in .pdf format.

http://filebeam.com/download.php?file=b71041f1a54cd1d387adbf9ddb61fe2d

http://filebeam.com/download.php?file=b71041f1a54cd1d387adbf9ddb61fe2d