Cost to repair historic bridge higher than expected
WAYNESBURG – Greene County Commissioners agreed Wednesday to place on the agenda for today’s meeting the awarding of a contract to repair the historic Pollocks Mill Bridge, which was damaged by an overweight tanker truck in September.
The low bid submitted for the work by Carmen Paliotta of South Park was for $395,630, county Chief Clerk Jeff Marshall said following Wednesday’s agenda meeting.
The bid amount is about $150,000 more than what the county received in March through a settlement with the insurer of the trucking company whose driver had caused the damage.
The difference will be made up with county Act 13 impact fee money, Marshall said. The county, in addition, intends to ask EQT for a contribution to help defray the county’s costs, he said.
The truck that caused a portion of the bridge to collapse was operated by Buccaneer Enterprises Inc. of Buckhannon, W.Va., but was hauling water to an EQT well site on Pollock Mills Road.
The county received three bids for the project. The county engineer indicated bids are a little higher than expect because the bridge is accessible from only one side and contractors may have planned to make repairs from the creek, which would require permitting, Marshall said. It also was assumed many more contractors would be interested in bidding the project, he said.
Bridge repairs will begin as soon as possible, Marshall said. Before anything can be done, however, People’s Natural Gas must relocate a natural gas line now on the bridge.
The 136 year-old bridge crosses Ten Mile Creek between Morgan and Jefferson townships. It partially collapsed Sept. 28 when a Buchaneer Enterprises truck attempted to cross it.
The bridge, which has a wooden deck, had a posted weight limit of 4 tons; the truck weighed about 16.5 tons, state police said.
The driver of the truck, who later pleaded guilty to two traffic citations and was fined $10,297, told police his global positioning system had led him to the bridge and he did not see any weight restriction signs.
A damage report, prepared for the county by Widmer Engineering Inc., estimates repair costs at $289,658. The report listed parts that will have to be replaced that include metal floor beams, connectors and wood timber decking and stringers.
The estimated costs of building a new bridge at that location exceeded $2 million, Marshall said.
In other business, the commissioners agreed to place on the agenda for today’s meeting the approval of a cooperative agreement with the county redevelopment authority for a housing study of the Ruff Creek and Waynesburg Lakes areas of Washington Township. The county will contribute $45,000 of Act 13 money for the study that will be done by Delta Development. Washington Township will provide a matching grant.