Rehab Weighed for Townsend’s Inlet Bridge

CREST HAVEN – Buy new or rebuild? That question often puzzles homeowners if the family grows. Like homeowners, the county is seeking an engineering firm’s advice to answer that query about the Townsend’s Inlet Bridge.
At the Sept. 26 freeholder meeting, the board authorized modifying a contract with Greenman-Pedersen Inc. for $150,000 to perform a “brief bridge replacement feasibility study.”
According to County Engineer Dale Foster that firm’s diver spotted the cracked piling that resulted in the closure of the span last spring.
The substructure was repaired, and the bridge subsequently reopened.
As with an aging house, Foster told the board the bridge linking Avalon and Sea Isle City on Ocean Drive was built of steel in 1939-1940 and was designed to carry trucks weighing 17.5 tons. The average modern truck is 40 tons, Foster said.
“The thought process went to looking at replacement of some of those spans (sections),” said Foster as he explained the proposal. “It might be worthwhile to replace them.”
That will be Greenman-Pedersen’s task: explore what’s feasible and report back by mid-November.
Due to the alignment of the bridge, particularly on the north side, with a park and homes nearby, a different slope is not feasible there.
Greater latitude exists on the Avalon side, since it is situated between the ocean and marshes.
Foster said the firm would look at “step-by-step replacement of some of the seven spans, seeing if it’s cost-effective.”
Replacement would speed the permitting process because permits for a new bridge might take years.
“We should be looking at the future of the bridge,” Foster added.
Such a view to the future could include a sidewalk and slight widening that would give bicyclists and joggers more space. Additionally, it would give anglers a place “out of harm’s way” when fall fishing season beckons many to the bridge.
Freeholder Will Morey apparently liked what he heard about the possible pedestrian enhancements.
“It is really important to move between the islands,” Morey said. “From a recreational standpoint, we are in a different time.” Such amenities would add to the enjoyment of the area by residents and visitors, Morey added.
Middle Thorofare Bridge
Foster also reported that the South Jersey Transportation Planning Organization, of which freeholder Vice-Director Leonard Desiderio is chairman, approved a contract Sept. 25 with Michael Baker International for conceptual development for an upgrade on the Middle Thorofare Bridge that links Five Mile Beach and Lower Township.
Foster said a meeting was scheduled with the firm Oct. 3. That study is to be completed by June 2019.