08-13-2015, 02:53 PM
Bunch of entitled folks in Grants Pass can't get across the river unless they have TWO bridges. Just because one is kind of old and needs some paint and stuff, they want to spend our ODOT money to turn the Caveman Bridge into some kind of show piece. Hey, what's up?...they can't swim? I've always felt that "Cavemen" people are all animal skins and no muscle. I mean if your REALLY want to get to the other side of the river and can't swim you could alway use a rope and horse ferry. Or drive to Rogue River and come down the other side.
Just another example of the sins of Big Government.
GRANTS PASS[b]
Caveman Bridge needs an overhaul[/b]
By Jeff Duewel
Grants Pass Daily Courier
Caveman Bridge, the iconic structure built by legendary bridge designer Conde McCullough 84 years ago, needs a facelift.
Concrete chunks have fallen out of support beams. A piece of steel fills a spot where a square of concrete on the railing fell off. A chunk is missing where a graceful arch meets the sidewalk.
The bridge over the Rogue River on Highway 99 is one of more than 400 bridges in Oregon judged to be structurally deficient by Transportation for America, a nonpartisan group concerned with transportation infrastructure.
“It’s probably the worst bridge in Josephine County,” opined Gary Leaming, spokesman for the Oregon Department of Transportation. “But when it gets done it’s going to look like a brand-new bridge. We’re doing a major overhaul of that bridge.”
That’s right, ODOT has the upgrade on the docket for 2017, a project likely to cost more than $5 million.
The fix-it list includes new pavement, and repair of cracks, failed joints and crumbling concrete, Leaming said.
The bridge is in no danger of collapsing, but it’s looking pretty sad. It gets power-washed every few years, and riprap was dumped in the river next to supports a dozen years ago, but not much has happened in recent years. It shows.
“Caveman Bridge is really a landmark bridge not only for Grants Pass, but for Southern Oregon,” Leaming said.
The work is still in the planning stages.
“We’re still refining the scope of how we’re going to do it,” Leaming added. “We may be looking at night-time closures, single-lane daytime closures, or a full closure for a month or so. There’s a lot of groundwork we still need to do. We want to keep inconveniences to a minimum. There will be impacts, but we’ve shown we can do work in Grant Pass and do it well.”
Leaming said the bridge work wouldn’t be as difficult for drivers as the downtown repaving in the late 1990s.
The railing of the bridge will be completely replaced, but will preserve the original look, similar to what was done on the Rock Point Bridge near Gold Hill a few years back.
Rock Point, in fact, was one of the original bridges designed by McCullough, whose works of functional art include Yaquina in Newport, Alsea Bay at Waldport, the Siuslaw Bridge at Florence, the Isaac Patterson Bridge at Gold Beach and the namesake McCullough Bridge at North Bend.
Most of the bridges were built between 1925 and 1936.
Caveman Bridge, which was built in 1931, is unusual in its “through-arch” design, which means the road runs in the middle of the arches, as opposed to on top or on the bottom of the arches, according to Robert Harlow, historian for ODOT and author of “Elegant Arches, Soaring Spans.”
The Wilson River Bridge in Tillamook, and Tenmile Creek and Big Creek on the central Oregon coast are also through-arch bridges designed by McCullough.
Just another example of the sins of Big Government.
GRANTS PASS[b]
Caveman Bridge needs an overhaul[/b]
By Jeff Duewel
Grants Pass Daily Courier
Caveman Bridge, the iconic structure built by legendary bridge designer Conde McCullough 84 years ago, needs a facelift.
Concrete chunks have fallen out of support beams. A piece of steel fills a spot where a square of concrete on the railing fell off. A chunk is missing where a graceful arch meets the sidewalk.
The bridge over the Rogue River on Highway 99 is one of more than 400 bridges in Oregon judged to be structurally deficient by Transportation for America, a nonpartisan group concerned with transportation infrastructure.
“It’s probably the worst bridge in Josephine County,” opined Gary Leaming, spokesman for the Oregon Department of Transportation. “But when it gets done it’s going to look like a brand-new bridge. We’re doing a major overhaul of that bridge.”
That’s right, ODOT has the upgrade on the docket for 2017, a project likely to cost more than $5 million.
The fix-it list includes new pavement, and repair of cracks, failed joints and crumbling concrete, Leaming said.
The bridge is in no danger of collapsing, but it’s looking pretty sad. It gets power-washed every few years, and riprap was dumped in the river next to supports a dozen years ago, but not much has happened in recent years. It shows.
“Caveman Bridge is really a landmark bridge not only for Grants Pass, but for Southern Oregon,” Leaming said.
The work is still in the planning stages.
“We’re still refining the scope of how we’re going to do it,” Leaming added. “We may be looking at night-time closures, single-lane daytime closures, or a full closure for a month or so. There’s a lot of groundwork we still need to do. We want to keep inconveniences to a minimum. There will be impacts, but we’ve shown we can do work in Grant Pass and do it well.”
Leaming said the bridge work wouldn’t be as difficult for drivers as the downtown repaving in the late 1990s.
The railing of the bridge will be completely replaced, but will preserve the original look, similar to what was done on the Rock Point Bridge near Gold Hill a few years back.
Rock Point, in fact, was one of the original bridges designed by McCullough, whose works of functional art include Yaquina in Newport, Alsea Bay at Waldport, the Siuslaw Bridge at Florence, the Isaac Patterson Bridge at Gold Beach and the namesake McCullough Bridge at North Bend.
Most of the bridges were built between 1925 and 1936.
Caveman Bridge, which was built in 1931, is unusual in its “through-arch” design, which means the road runs in the middle of the arches, as opposed to on top or on the bottom of the arches, according to Robert Harlow, historian for ODOT and author of “Elegant Arches, Soaring Spans.”
The Wilson River Bridge in Tillamook, and Tenmile Creek and Big Creek on the central Oregon coast are also through-arch bridges designed by McCullough.
