Article Photos

Fact Box

FYI:

Public comment on the proposed bridge sites also can be submitted to: Gregory Bailey, P.E., Director- Engineering Division, West Virginia Division of Highways, State Capitol Complex Building 5, Room 450, 1900 Kanawha Blvd. East, Charleston, WV 25305-0430. The deadline is Oct. 24.

Advertisement

WELLSBURG - State highway officials and engineers hired to determine the best site for a proposed Ohio River bridge between the south ends of Brooke and Jefferson counties received input from many Brooke County residents Thursday at a public meeting held at Wellsburg Middle School.

Many attending said the bridge is sorely needed in that area, though at least one suggested it would be better to replace the Market Street Bridge at its present site.

Representatives of HDR Engineering of Weirton and the West Virginia Division of Highways brought maps and data detailing three sites that have been deemed most feasible based upon such factors as wildlife, homes and businesses; estimated costs for construction and right of way; and travel time.

The three sites are:

From state Route 2 south of Buffalo Creek in Brooke County to Third Street in Brilliant near Clark Way. Engineers have proposed the addition of a right turn lane from Third Street onto the span and traffic signals at the intersection and at the southbound ramps from Third Street to state Route 7 to accommodate an increase in traffic through Brilliant.

Access to the bridge from Route 2 would be established with a center turn lane for northbound traffic and a right turn lane for southbound traffic.

The estimated cost for the 1,000-foot span is $118.9 million, with $3.4 million estimated for right of way.

From Route 2 south of Buffalo Creek to an area at the north end of Brilliant between Penn and Steuben streets and 200 feet east of the Norfolk-Southern Railroad. Plans call for existing city roads and new connector roads to lead traffic from the span north and south to Route 7.

The bridge would form a loop above Route 2 ending at state Route 2 just south of state Route 67. Route 2 there would be widened to accommodate the addition of left and right turn lanes to the bridge.

The estimated cost for the 1,000-foot span is $125.4 million, with $9.7 million estimated for right of way.

From Route 2 south of Buffalo Creek and Third Street near Hudson Street. As with the other Third Street proposal, a right turn lane would lead traffic onto the bridge and traffic signals would be established at the intersection and at the existing southbound lanes to Route 7.

The estimated cost for the 700-foot span is $76 million, with $3.6 million estimated for right of way.

While the design for the second option appears to be the most complex on paper, it involves the construction of about a mile of additional connector roads and ramps, compared to a half-mile of such connections for the other two options, said Amy Staud, a traffic engineer with HDR Engineering.

Bill Murray, WVDOH project manager, said the higher cost is largely because the bridge must have a 1,000-foot clearance at that bend in the river to accommodate barge traffic, as stipulated by the U.S. Coast Guard.

A higher bridge calls for certain structural designs that require more material, said Scott Boehm, highway engineer for HDR Engineering.

On Wednesday many Brilliant residents said they preferred the option because the others would affect a largely residential area, with two schools and a park within close proximity of the other sites.

Some Brooke County residents on Thursday said they preferred the site, too, but for different reasons.

Dave Elliott of Wellsburg said the site would put the bridge closest to the south end of Wellsburg and to state Route 67, which leads to West Liberty University and Bethany College.

Gayle Montgomery of Weirton was among supporters of the new bridge.

"Because I work in Wellsburg, it would give me an alternative route to get there or home if there were a major accident or flood in Follansbee or Wellsburg," she said.

Montgomery recalled staying at a co-worker's home on state Route 27 during the 2004 flood because she couldn't reach her home by state Route 2.

Ed Zatta, a Wellsburg business owner, said he already sees customers from Brilliant and Rayland but believes more Ohioans would visit Wellsburg if a bridge were built, particularly because Brilliant doesn't have a shopping plaza.

Zatta said when the Market Street Bridge was closed for repairs recently, traveling to the Veterans Memorial Bridge for business in Ohio was an inconvenience.

Ryan Weld of Wellsburg cited the age of the Market Street Bridge, which is 105 years old, and the closing of the Fort Steuben Bridge as reasons to establish a new link to Ohio.

The new bridge has been identified as an eventual replacement for the Market Street Bridge, though that span is expected to undergo an estimated $10 million in renovations in the next few years.

U.S. Sens. Robert C. Byrd and Jay Rockefeller, both D-W.Va., have allocated $18 million for the planning and initial construction of the new span. State and local officials have been seeking additional federal funds.

Also attending Thursday was James Herman of Weirton, who said a new bridge should be built at the present site of the Market Street Bridge.Herman said the anticipated four-lane expansion of U.S. Route 22 from Cadiz to Columbus will bring more traffic to Steubenville and Weirton, which have larger populations than Wellsburg or Brilliant and more commerce between them.

(Scott can be contacted at wscott@heraldstaronline.com.)