Work Underway to Help Stabilize Willow Cale Road Bridge
The City of Prince George has started work to help stablize the Willow Cale Road Bridge over Haggith Creek – photos 250News
Prince George, B.C. – The City of Prince George has begun work to stabilize the Willow Cale Road Bridge over Haggith Creek.
Adam Homes, city engineer with the City of Prince George
City engineer Adam Homes says it started after the City was notified on Aug. 14 that a slide had begun on the south side of the bridge. The damage became apparent when cracks appeared in the new asphalt leading to the bridge deck.
“So, immediately we started an investigation to determine why that was happening and how to mitigate it,” he says. “So, what you’re seeing today is some of the operations.”
Homes says that work is focused on stopping the slide which includes installing a culvert and approximately five metres of fill.
“They’re installing a slope indicator and that’ll just tell us how much the ground is moving after it’s installed.”
He says the work will force the closure of the bridge at 5 p.m. tomorrow. Homes says an alternate route will be set up.
No word yet on how long the remediation and repair operation will take, but the City expects it “could take many months.”
Asked if the City is considering taking legal action, Rob Van Adrichem, the City’s director of external relations, would only say “the City is reviewing the situation.”
No word yet on what the repairs will cost. The entire project, which began last fall, and included the opening of the bridge last spring, cost $3 million.
Comments
This project was a disaster from the start. September 2016 it started and now we are September 2017. The contractor was supposed to be completed last Christmas. The bridge was only opened at the end of May. Anyone who drove it knew it was not going to work. The job was done so poorly the bridge shook every time you drove over it. A month ago they started drilling core samples and then the pavement started to crack. The city and contractor should both be sued by local businesses and residents for the shoddy job. This should have been an easy project with paved access to both sides of the new bridge. Really it should have never have been a bridge but just replaced the culvert.
I agree.
A cluster….from the beginning.
Maybe an independent inquiry is needed by an outside source, might answer some questions from the taxpayers.
I agree with all of you. The contractor may not have done all their due diligence with this job but ultimately in this one mans opinion, a good portion of the responsibility falls on those at the City that chose this contractor in the first place
Doesn’t the City have an inspection process for confirming adequate fill and compaction during construction?
Agree with the comments about a culvert, could even have used a bottomless arch culvert, I believe those are still manufactured locally by Armtec
metalman.
The city employs a building full of junior engineers that I wouldn’t give a box of popsicle sticks to play with. Nevermind millions of dollars.
This is what ‘money is no option’ buys the city. Lots of blame at city hall for all aspects of this colossal waste of tax payer dollars. It should have been a new culvert and done for under a half million in two months max.
Multiple years of a detour that takes one out Highway 97 south to Dams Road and around is just pure negligence that has a tremendous cost for those businesses Like Carrier that are effected by this failed project.
I agree. What is most disturbing is the sense of entitlement that is held by so many at your city hall.
Matched only by the total lack of accountability.
I was once told by senior people when I pointed that out …”yes, we know they are very much incompetent… but they are OUR incompetents !! ”
Just cannot argue with that kind of logic !
V.
Who was the contractor and engineer? Someone signed off on it.
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