Route 24 detoured to repair bridge
Story Location:
millsboro, DE
United States
State and local officials say bridge repair work on Route 24 has periodically jammed traffic, but the temporary inconvenience is minor compared to possible bridge failure.
Work on a bridge over Swan Creek, near the Mountaire Farms poultry plant on Route 24, began May 2, and repairs are expected to be completed Saturday, May 21. However, Delaware Department of Transportation spokesman James Westhoff says rainy days may delay completion.
“Rain is good for farmers and the outlets, but not so much for bridge designers,” he said. “None of us want to close Route 24. The detour routes understandably become clogged pretty quickly – they were never designed for that volume of traffic. Our best way to respond is to get the road open as quickly as possible.”
Route 24 is closed between Maryland Camp Road and William Street Road, an area that averaged nearly 20,000 vehicles per day in 2014, DelDOT data shows.
Westhoff said ground below the bridgewas eroding. He said water would soon scour under the bridge, rendering it unsafe.
“It wasn't an emergency, but it was critical,” he said. “If we hadn't done this, we could have likely seen an emergency closure, and the bridge could have failed.”
Westhoff said emergency repairs would have caused Route 24 to be closed much longer than a few weeks.
Millsboro Mayor John Thoroughgood said the detour route has negatively affected westbound rush hour traffic. As for eastbound traffic, the detour has alleviated some congestion, he said.
“As far as town limits, it's been easier to get around,” he said. “But it comes in clusters, and then there's a break. A traffic jam's a traffic jam. You're going to have this. There's no sense getting worried about it.”
Thoroughgood agreed that if work on the bridge had been delayed, officials would have had a much bigger problem on their hands.
“The shoulder there was sinking,” he said. “It sunk down probably about 12 inches. It was caving in. It could have been a six-month project if they waited.”
DelDOT's contractor, Mumford & Miller Concrete Inc., is placing sheet pile and riprap, sealing the joint between an original culvert and a culvert extension, and pouring a new headwall to prevent slope erosion.
The eastbound detour route takes motorists from Route 24 north onto Hollyville Road, right onto Mount Joy Road and back to Route 24. The westbound detour takes motorists from Route 24, right onto Hollyville Road and back to Route 24. Detour signs are posted.
