I sent along a few quick questions to Steve Barrett at the Brattleboro Department of Public Works, and he fired back some answers:
We know about some of the newer bridges around town - the bridge to Chesterfield, the recent Creamery Bridge repairs, the new bridge over the Whetstone on Main Street, etc. but the recent bridge collapse has people wondering...
iB: How old are our oldest bridges?
DPW: Our 1879 Creamery Bridge is our oldest. We may have some small bridges that are older that don't have a known date of construction.
iB: How often are bridges inspected and repaired?
DPW: The Vermont Agency of Transportation provides a bridge inspection program for bridges over 20 feet in length. The program is funded by a combination of Federal and State Funds. The bridges are inspected on a two years cycle.
Each year the State Bridge inspectors provide the Town of Brattleboro with a report called a Structure Inspection, Inventory and Appraisal Sheet. The report rates the bridge and offers an inspection summery and any recommended repairs that may be needed.
The Public Works is responsible for maintaining town owned bridges. Each year approximately $20,000 is funded in the Public Works Budget for maintaining bridges. The Public Works Department uses this fund to make the recommended repairs made by the inspectors. Public works also completes inspections and make repairs to the town owned bridges. Special inspections are completed by our staff after heavy rains to check for damage. Larger projects are funded by a combination of local, State and federal money.
iB: Are there any we should be concerned about?
DPW: We currently have an engineer design for the replacement of the first bridge on Sunset Lake Road. This is on the top of our priority list.
iB: Thanks, DPW!