Jennifer Flynn of TDOT
A $433,531 bridge replacement project on the north end of Dayton, Tenn., will divert traffic onto detour routes until next May, according to the Tennessee Department of Transportation.
The bridge over Little Richland Creek on Access Road near the U.S. Highway 27 intersection was closed Thursday so Cleveland, Tenn.-based contractor Simpson Construction could get started on the seven-month-long project, TDOT spokeswoman Jennifer Flynn said Thursday.
"The project will completely replace the superstructure [top portion] of the bridge, including installation of new beams, new deck, new rails and new pavement," Flynn said. "The substructure of the bridge is in good shape and requires only minimal repairs."
The work should be complete by May 31, so it will create a traffic snarl until it's finished.
"Because the bridge is a narrow, two-lane bridge, and because of the scope of the work, it will have to be closed for the duration of the project. Detour routes are signed and marked," she said.
Rhea County Director of Schools Jerry Levengood was a bit irked local officials didn't get more notice on the project.
"We were not even aware of this project until last Thursday [Oct. 2]," Levengood said. "We really had to scramble."
That's because 19 school buses travel between Rhea Central Elementary in Dayton and Rhea County High and Rhea Middle schools in Evensville twice a day.
Levengood said bus drivers typically are routed so they don't have to cross railroad tracks, cross through unsignaled intersections or travel through downtown Dayton during peak traffic hours.
During the project, buses going from Rhea Central to Evensville in the mornings will take Railroad Street, cross 11th Avenue with Dayton police controlling traffic to a right onto 16th Avenue, where traffic lights control the intersection at Highway 27 as they head north.
In the afternoons, buses going from Evensville to Dayton will take U.S. Highway 27 south to a right onto 11th Avenue, to a left onto the old stretch of Market Street back to the usual route to Rhea Central, Levengood said.
"We actually ran that way yesterday just to see how it went and today was the second day we ran it," he said on Thursday. "So we're good to go."
TDOT sent a letter Sept. 26 about a pre-construction meeting held Oct. 3, but "there was some confusion regarding the invitation ... which resulted in Mayor [Gary] Louallen not receiving it," Flynn said Thursday afternoon. She called Louallen on Thursday and apologized.
"Mayor Louallen was very gracious and understanding," she said.
Contact staff writer Ben Benton at bbenton@timesfreepress.com or twitter.com/BenBenton or www.facebook.com/ben.benton1 or 423-757-6569.