A heavily trafficked bridge connecting Williston and South Burlington is closed indefinitely after sustaining high water damage during a storm on Halloween.
The bridge connects Marshall Avenue in Williston to Kimball Avenue in South Burlington, and crosses over the Muddy Brook, which also forms the border between the two municipalities.
Erik Wells, assistant to the Williston town manager, said residents and businesses have reported increased traffic on Williston Road, Kennedy Drive and South Brownell Road as a result of the closure.
A joint press release from the two municipalities explains how the culvert the bridge spans was damaged during a 2017 storm. The late-October storm this year, with record breaking rain and high winds, further damaged the culvert.
The Vermont Agency of Transportation advised officials in both municipalities that the bridge is “vulnerable in its current state and unsafe for use,” the release says. All vehicles, bicycles and pedestrians are prohibited from using the bridge.
Amy Tatko, a spokesperson for VTrans, said road crews looked at the bridge on Nov. 2, where they reported the culvert had shifted position and the high water caused parts of the banks to give way, reducing the space the bridge currently sits on.
“It’s unclear at this point how long it will stay closed,” Tatko said.
Wells said public works employees from both municipalities have been in contact with VTrans to secure funding to fix the temporary bridge. Tatko said there is funding available from the Federal Highway Administration, as the roads are listed as federal aid roads. Wells said FEMA may be able to help as well.
“I think we’ll know more in the next couple weeks if those things will come together for us,” Wells said. “We’ll definitely keep the public informed as we get more information.”
Gov. Phil Scott said this week he plans to submit a disaster declaration, which would allow the state to access federal funds for recovery efforts. State officials say the storm caused at least $5 million of damage to public infrastructure, and that total costs could be as much as $10 million.
Wells said the Williston Selectboard has agreed on a permanent fix for the bridge, and an engineering firm is working on the designs. The current plan calls for restoration of the culvert and a new bridge. That bridge will also have a 10-foot wide green area separating vehicle traffic from a shared use bicycle and pedestrian path.
Wells said the estimated cost will be about $2 million, and voters will be asked to approve a bond once final plans are accepted by the respective boards.
The temporary bridge has been in place since 2017, and the press release says the permanent solution will have “an estimated construction completion date of 2021.”
During a storm on April 7, 2017, high water caused a part of the original bridge to break away, leaving a large hole in the westbound lane. ECI was contracted to build the temporary bridge and reopened traffic a couple weeks later.
For now, Wells expects the bridge to remain closed for at least the next few weeks.
Representatives from South Burlington and Williston’s public works departments did not return requests for comment before publication.
