News Talk 94.1/AM 1600 Where The Upper Cumberland Talks
Putnam County Highway crews removed the barricades and debris to reopen City Lake Bridge on Monday.
Road Supervisor Randy Jones said TDOT inspected the bridge last week and gave clearance to reopen Monday morning. Jones said the repairs and reinforcements make the bridge stronger than it was before after reinforcing rusted steel webbing.
Jones said crews working on the bridge noticed that used materials were put in to originally build the City Lake Bridge.
“He brought to my attention that some of these beams had old rivets and stuff in them,” Jones said. “Of course this bridge was built in the early 1970’s I think, and when it was built I guess they were tight for money and the county did what they had to, to get it across.”
Jones said plates have been bolted on the I-beams to reinforce near the abutment, addressing the issues.
“Those I-beams were used and they had some rust holes come in them, and so that’s what caused the issue,” Jones said. “There was just like six or eight of them that had an issue and we built plates to go on each side of them, where we bolted them in together to reinforce the I-beams.”
Jones said the project moved quicker than anticipated, and the only step that took significant time was gathering materials. Jones said City Lake Bridge is certified for public use, with no weight limit.
