By By PETER WILLIAMS,Managing Editor
Motorists using two bridges in Beaufort County — including one that handles nearly 5,000 cars a day — will have to take detours for up to seven months while the bridges are replaced.
On Thursday the N.C. Board of Transportation approved a number of contracts including two that would replace bridges over Broad Creek and Tranters Creek. The pricetag is $1.8 million and the work should start in June.
Atwell Construction Company Inc. of Greenville was the winning bidder on both contracts.
DOT will be replacing the existing bridge on N.C. Highway 32 over Broad Creek southeast of Washington. Work on the $1 million contract is scheduled to begin as early as June 1, with final completion by Dec. 31. In addition to rebuilding the bridge, the approaches to the bridge will be repaved and vegetation will be replanted.
DOT is also replacing the bridge over Tranter’s Creek at the Beaufort/Pitt County line on Wards Bridge Road (S.R. 1556) in Pitt County and Horse Pen Swamp Road (S.R. 1414) in Beaufort County.
For the Broad Creek bridge, motorists traveling northeast on N.C. 32 will need to turn left onto Magnolia School Road (State Road 1311), right onto Turkey Trot Road (S.R. 1326) and right again onto Black Road (S.R. 1328) to get back to N.C. 32. Motorists traveling south on N.C. 32 will turn right onto Black Road, left onto Turkey Trot Road and left onto Magnolia School Road to get back to N.C. 32.
The Broad Creek bridge handles about 4,900 vehicles a day according to Neil Lassiter, a DOT engineer in the Greenville office. It was built in 1953.
Work on the $914,215 contract for the Tranter’s Creek bridge is scheduled to begin as early as June 15, with final completion by Dec. 31. In addition to rebuilding the bridge, construction includes repaving the approaches on Wards Bridge Road and Horse Pen Swamp Road and, after construction is completed by Nov. 15, replanting vegetation.
The Tranters Creek Bridge handles about 270 cars a day and was built in 1970 using wood pilings.
That span will be closed to traffic and a detour will be in place. Motorists traveling east into Beaufort County will go north on Sheppard Mill Road (S.R. 1550), turn right onto Beargrass Road (S.R. 1551), cross into Beaufort County and turn right onto Cherry Run Road (S.R. 1001), and then turn left back onto Horse Pen Swamp Road.
Motorists traveling west into Pitt County on Horse Pen Swamp Road will turn right onto Cherry Run Road then left onto Tucker-Bullock Road/Beargrass Road, cross into Pitt County and turn left onto Sheppard Mill Road.