The controversial pedestrian bridge over U.S. 31 in East Bay Township was hit and damaged by a truck Thursday morning.
The fencing lining the walkway of the bridge was damaged at 9:54 a.m. when a commercial dump truck pulling a trailer loaded with an excavator collided with it, Grand Traverse County Sheriff’s Lt. Roy Raska said.
The arm of the excavator had not been properly lowered or loaded into the trailer, Raska said, and that was what struck the side of the bridge.
The impact of that collision caused a piece of debris to fall and strike a passenger car on the highway below. No injuries were reported, but the driver of the dump truck – a 47-year-old man from Lake Ann who was heading west on U.S. 31N – was cited for the crash, Raska said.
The bridge was being inspected by Michigan Department of Transportation that day.
Erik Snyder, transportation engineer for MDOT who conducted a high-load hit inspection of the bridge after the incident, told the Record-Eagle that he was surveying the bridge for any possible threat to the safety of pedestrians and drivers below.
His findings have not yet been released, but Snyder had already been there to perform a biennial bridge inspection.
MDOT Project Manager Chad Skrocki said Thursday’s scheduled inspection by Snyder was “just by random” on the day that the bridge sustained damage.
All United States bridges, according to National Bridge Inspection Standards, must “maintain safe bridge operation and prevent structural and functional failures.”
This steel pedestrian bridge is slated for removal as part of a state Department of Natural Resources $8.5-million project to renovate Keith J. Charters Traverse City State Park.
The DNR plan is to replace the bridge with a street-level pedestrian crossing and traffic signal.
Hundreds of local residents, along with virtually all local elected officials, have spoken out against the planned removal of the bridge, citing safety hazards to pedestrians trying to cross the busy highway at ground level.
A 47-year-old Lewiston man was struck and killed June 22 while attempting to cross U.S. 31 between Three and Four Mile roads.
The Record-Eagle interviewed a number of visitors to the community who, without exception, urged state officials to keep the bridge or replace it with a new bridge equipped with ramps for those who can’t climb stairs.
“That bridge is symbolic of Traverse City,” one said, “it shows you care about visitors.”
This story was produced in partnership with the Traverse City Record-Eagle as part of the Michigan News Group Internship Program, a collaboration between WCMU Public Media and local newspapers in central and northern Michigan. The program’s mission is to train the next generation of journalists and combat the rise of rural news deserts.
