Fall River residents gear up for proposed 6-week bridge closure

The planned replacement of a bridge in Fall River could cause some headaches for residents, and therefore is receiving mixed reviews from community members.

The bridge, which connects Fall River Road and Highway 2, along with homes and businesses in the community will be replaced this summer. The construction will see the current bridge replaced with an entirely new one.

Councillor Barry Dalrymple says the existing bridge is in dire need of replacement.

“The railings are rotted, the underneath is not in good condition. It is currently safe to drive across, but it is not great, and it won’t be safe forever, it has to be replaced,” he said.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "The railings are rotted, the underneath is not in good condition. It is currently safe to drive across, but it is not great, and it won't be safe forever, it has to be replaced," he said.

The hitch is that construction is expected to last 10 weeks in total, but for six of the 10 weeks the bridge will be completely closed, meaning the main route in the area will be closed to motorists.

The six week closure means many residents will have to detour, possibly upwards of 20 kilometers depending where they live in the community.

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Kathy Bezanson of Bezanson Orthodontics says this is a major concern for businesses and residents, and says possible alternatives have been overlooked.

“Why does the Macdonald Bridge get fixed underneath and nothing is disrupted, and we can’t even do a small bridge like this? There’s something wrong here,” Bezanson said.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "Why does the <a href="http://globalnews.ca/tag/the-big-lift/" target="_blank">Macdonald Bridge</a> get fixed underneath and nothing is disrupted, and we can't even do a small bridge like this? There's something wrong here," Bezanson said.

The bridge will be closed in July and August, when children from the three schools in the community are on vacation.  A bicycle and a walking bridge will be brought in for the duration of the construction.

The underneath of the bridge will also be raised almost three feet, to allow canoers and kayakers to travel from Dartmouth to the Bay of Fundy.

“It is a thriving area and they should have put more thought into how they were going to do this,” Bezanson said.

An official date has not yet been set for when the construction will start — that will be determined by awarded contractor.

Dalrymple says with a little bit of neighbourly cooperation and patience, the bridge replacement process will be fine and the end result will benefit everyone.

 “Be patient, we’ll get through it,” Dalrymple said.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter:  "Be patient, we'll get through it," Dalrymple said.