Closing bridge right decision

A bridge collapse in Giles County pictures what might have been in Albemarle.

Even as replacement work was under way, the bridge gave way when an overweight truck drove across it last week, said the Virginia Department of Transportation.

The bridge over Walker Creek was a one-lane, steel deck-truss bridge, built in 1932.

The Advance Mills Bridge in Albe-marle is a one-lane, timber-deck truss bridge. It was moved to that location in 1948 to replace an earlier bridge; no one knows when it was built.

The bridge has been a point of contention for residents who depend on it. It was closed last year after an inspection showed accelerated deterioration.

Previously the bridge had been allowed to remain open but was posted for a reduced weight limit, but officials had a tough time enforcing that limit.

Residents had complained that the restricted limit prevented fire trucks from reaching them in a timely manner and worried about the impact on school bus routes, delivery trucks and other transportation.

Ultimately, of course, the issue is about timely replacement of the bridge by VDOT. Replacement should have occurred before the bridge had to be closed.

VDOT officials recently committed to an accelerated timetable for completely replacing the structure by next fall, but that doesn’t help residents in the meantime.

However, leaving the old bridge open was not an option, despite the bad timing.

The bridge collapse in Giles County shows why.

“This is an example of why we post weight limits on bridges,” state bridge engineer Ken Walus said in a news release.

The truck was said to be carrying 15.5 tons of concrete, over and above the weight of the truck. The posted limit for the bridge was eight tons.

VDOT set the weight limit last February following an inspection.

That was the same round of inspections that resulted in a weight-limit reduction for another bridge in Albemarle County.

Similar to the Advance Mills and Giles County bridges, the Dickerson Road structure is a one-lane, steel-truss, timber-deck bridge, built in 1924.

Weight limit had been eight tons — it was dropped to three tons.

Given what happened in Giles, we can only trust that drivers will have enough common sense to obey that new limit.