Published: October 24, 2009 01:30 pm      

ODOT waffles as nearly-new Hereford bridge crumbles

It’s cracked.

It’s splitting.

The bridge abutments at one point have pulled away from the main structure and are no longer connected to it, leaving what is supposed to be concrete-reinforcing steel rebar naked and exposed.

A part of one road shoulder approaching the bridge from the west, within several feet of where the bridge spans one of the busiest highways in Oklahoma, has dropped nearly two inches.

Ironically, the problems are not part of some dilapidated old structure, weathered and weakened after decades of use.

Instead, they’re at the relatively new Hereford Lane Interchange — a $7.2 million Oklahoma Department of Transportation project.

Bridge abutments and road approaches leading right up to the bridge on Hereford Lane — which spans U.S. Highway 69 north of McAlester — are beginning to crack and separate, even though it’s been open to traffic for only about a year.

Daylight can be seen between one of the new concrete barriers on the side of the roadway leading to the bridge.

Still, traffic — including semi trucks and trailers, and heavy concrete-carrying trucks — continue to rumble across it on a daily basis.

Since the dropped bridge abutments can’t be seen without getting out of a vehicle and climbing over a guard rail, it’s obvious that most drivers are oblivious to the weakened parts of the interchange.

The News-Capital reported in June that approaches to the bridge were dropping and crumbling, leaving those who were driving across it to experience some sudden jolts as they drove over the structure.

Following that report, the Oklahoma Department of Transportation put some asphalt over the bumpy portion of the bridge, but that did nothing to stop the deterioration of the main structure.

Now, cracks are spreading almost all the way across the new roadway.

One large, jagged crack on the northeast side has spread across three of the new road panels.

Alfred Buller is one of those who normally drives across the bridge on a daily basis — although he’s now rethinking that procedure.

“As a taxpayer, I think whoever the company is they contracted through ought to be responsible for that.

“We paid for a bridge. I don’t think we got our money’s worth out of it,” he said.

“Somebody’s got to be held responsible,” said Buller. “That bridge, to me, is unsafe.”

“My daughter and my grandkids drive over it every day. I’ve told them ‘Don’t even cross it.”’

“It’s pretty bad that a new bridge is in that shape.”

Buller said he’s been driving over a similar bridge to the south — the one on Electric Avenue, which also spans the highway — for 20 years and has not seen anything like the deterioration on the Hereford Lane Interchange.

“The one on Electric Avenue appears to be in as good of shape as ever,” he said.

“I just want the bridge to be safe,” he said of the Hereford Lane Bridge.

“At what point are they going to seal it off and keep traffic off of it?”

Not at this point, according to ODOT Acting Division 2 Engineer Calvin Carney.

Carney was in Oklahoma City for a meeting on Friday, but spoke briefly with the News-Capital by telephone.

“The bridge is OK,” Carney said. “There is no problem with the bridge.

“Everything is good and safe with the structure. I’m not concerned about it falling in on anybody. It’s the approaches,” he said, referring to the new roads that lead right up to where the bridge spans the highway.

Edmond-based TTK Construction Co. served as contractor for the bridge project, according to ODOT. The state agency planned the $7.2 million interchange after there were a number of accidents at the site.

The interchange and bridge prevents people who are driving on East and West Hereford lane from having to cross four lanes of the busy U.S. Highway 69 to get to the other side.

Plans for the project included the 240-foot long bridge and its approaches, along with a service road and entry and exit ramps on the north and south side of the bridge.

Carney said he and other ODOT personnel looked at the bridge on Thursday and had marked sections of the bridge and approaches with orange paint.

“We will have a drill team in there on Monday,” said Carney.

“We’re going to do some drilling and testing.”

He said that ODOT will hire a private contractor to do the drilling. No liability or charges have been placed on the contractor who constructed the bridge, he said.

“During construction, it looked like everything passed, according to our records,” Carney said.

He is waiting to see the results of the drilling and testing planned at the site of the interchange.

“We’re trying to find out what the problem is,” said Carney.

Buller, who had spoken earlier with the News-Capital, believes the taxpayers deserve some answers about the problem as well.

He thinks it’s ridiculous that taxpayers have already spent $7.2 million on the project and are about to have to spend more, now that parts of the interchange are literally falling apart.

“There ought to be an inquiry into how this could have happened,” Buller said.

Contact James Beaty at jbeaty@mcalesternews.com.