Niles Main Street Bridge project hits ‘home stretch’
Published 9:18 am Tuesday, October 27, 2015
Leader photo/CRAIG HAUPERT
Workers shovel and smooth out concrete Friday on the deck of the Niles Main Street Bridge. The bridge is expected to open to traffic before the end of November.
With the pouring of the concrete deck completed, an official with the Michigan Department of Transportation said construction on the new Niles Main Street Bridge is nearing its end.
“We are pretty much going on the home stretch here,” said Chris Jacobs, MDOT engineer. “We are pretty close to opening where we were estimating the last time we talked.”
“November 25 is what we are shooting for — give or take.”
Workers finished pouring concrete on the remaining portions of the bridge deck Friday.
Jacobs said they needed nearly 750 cubic yards of concrete to finish the entire deck, which was done on two days spread out about a week apart.
Workers first poured concrete on sections of deck in between the bridge’s two piers, then finished up Friday by pouring the sections of deck over the piers.
Jacobs said they use this sequence to keep from “dynamically loading” the sections of deck over the piers, which could result in premature bridge failure.
“That is why we have a sequence for deck pours,” he said.
In the coming weeks, Jacobs said people could expect to see workers finishing the bridge sidewalks and approaches, as well as creating curbs and gutters.
Work to demolish the former bridge and build a new one began in October 2014. It is being spearheaded by MDOT and is expected to cost approximately $10.6 million.
