McCreary bridges listed as deficient

Photo by Greg Bird Five county bridges, like this one over Indian Creek, are considered deficient according to a new survey. The bridges scored four or below on a 9-point rating scale to earn the classification.

By Greg Bird
birdman@tmcvoice.com

Five McCreary County bridges have been listed as structurally deficient according to a report distributed by the Kentucky Highway District 8 last month. The report was compiled by a national transportation research group identifies road and bridge conditions in the district, as well as analyzing traffic safety and needs.
Three bridges over Marsh Creek, located on KY 1044, KY 1045 and KY 478, and two over Indian Creek, located on Sandhill Road and the other on Beulah Heights Road all have been listed as having significant deterioration of their bridge decks, supports or other major components according to the report.
Being listed as structurally deficient could mean a lower weight restriction to vehicle traffic, or closure. Of the five bridges listed, four already have weight restrictions imposed. Further weight limitations could impact travel for school busses or emergency vehicles, forcing them to find alternate routes.
The oldest bridge, located over Indian Creek on KY 1045, was built in 1957 and carries an average of 309 vehicles each day.
All five bridges come under the purview of the State Highway Department.
District 8 has a total of 963 bridges over 20-feet long and listed in the national bridge inventory. As of 2016 61 of those were listed as structurally deficient.
The report also listed a need of increasing road capacity on Highway 92 between McCreary and Wayne County.