Maroon Creek bridge needs fixing, again

State inspectors have discovered another crack at the base of the Maroon Creek bridge that requires repair, but the problem isn't putting use of the bridge in immediate jeopardy.

"It's not anything critical by any means," said Del French, deputy superintendent of maintenance at the Grand Junction office of the Colorado Department of Transportation. "We would already be on it if it was that critical. We just want to get it done before winter."

The crack will be fixed once a repair plan is in place and approved by the State Historic Preservation Office. The bridge, originally built as a railroad trestle in 1888, is a historic landmark.

CDOT bridge inspectors take a close look at the aging span twice a year and maintenance personnel check it weekly, French said.

Last January, inspectors found a cracked pier footing, or pedestal, in the bridge's support system. It was encapsulated with concrete. The latest crack is of a similar nature, French said.

The piers, in the Maroon Creek gorge, are large stone blocks, explained Joe Elsen, CDOT program engineer in Glenwood Springs.

"It was built in 1888. They didn't use concrete, they used cut sandstone blocks," he said. "There's just basically a crack in it.

"You don't want to leave it like that."

The cracked pier is not of the magnitude of the damage discovered during an inspection in October 2003, which prompted the immediate closure of the bridge to heavy trucks. At that time, CDOT discovered two massive sandstone blocks that support one end of the bridge deck had cracked, one of them badly. Repairs were made immediately.

CDOT is finalizing designs for a new bridge to carry Highway 82 over Maroon Creek, though funding for its actual construction is not currently available.

Janet Urquhart's e-mail address is janet@aspentimes.com