Published: February 19, 2008 11:39 pm      

SAFETY: Crumbling bridge not hazardous, DOT says

Pieces of debris falling from an expressway overpass caused an automobile accident and blocked traffic for three days, but the bridge does not pose a hazard for drivers, a state Department of Transportation official said.

Concrete chunks larger than bricks fell from the stretch of the LaSalle Expressway passing over Cayuga Drive on Sunday, causing a car to rear-end another car that had stopped to avoid the falling debris, Falls Police Lt. Michael Kachurek said.

Though no one was injured, Niagara Falls police and Department of Public Works officials immediately blocked traffic from the underpass until DOT representatives could assess the damage.

“When I saw the chunks, what I saw drew my attention and I was quite concerned,” said John Caso, deputy DPW director. “The bridge itself, when you really looked up at it, you could see the bridge has some problems up there.”

Traffic was detoured around Cayuga Drive until DOT workers cleared the road Tuesday afternoon.

“We, along with the police, thought it was safer to route them around there until we got a judgment on what should be done there,” said David Kinney, DPW director.

DOT workers arrived on scene Tuesday to assess the damage and removed loose clumps of concrete from the overpass. Afterward, Cayuga Drive was opened for travel.

No further work is needed as the bridge is not unstable and doesn’t pose a threat to motorists driving on or below it, said Charlie Morgante, director of operations for the DOT.

“They went out there and removed anything they had to,” Morgante said. “We don’t believe that there’s any further actions needed to be taken. We will go back out there in the spring or early summer to do any other repair work as needed.”

The crumbling occurred along the guardrail and sidewalk area — not the bridge’s structural deck — and was likely caused by cold weather and temperature changes, Morgante said.

The bridge, built in 1970 and last inspected in mid-2006, was most recently scored as a 5.078 in the state bridge condition rating system, according to DOT bridge data.

Deficient bridges in need of rehabilitation are defined as having a rating of less than 5, but deficient bridges are not considered unsafe, according to rating syllabus. New bridges are rated as 7.

The falling concrete is not a sign that the bridge’s condition is not up to standard and the DOT will continue to monitor the bridge’s condition, Morgante said.

“These bridges are inspected thoroughly every two years,” he said. “We also have our supervisors who drive around every day and will continue to watch that bridge for any further problems.”