Central Avenue Bridge Replacement Project

Project Overview

Based on recent bridge inspection reports, the current bridge structure has a low Sufficiency Rating and is flagged as Structurally Deficient, which resulted in placing the bridge on the State’s Highway Bridge Program Eligible Bridge List. Replacing the bridge will improve the State’s infrastructure report card by addressing structural deficiencies and removing the bridge from the State’s list.

Safety is also a primary focus of the project. Since 2014, at least 19 accidents have been reported along this segment of Central Avenue. Vehicle congestion has contributed to these accidents, and has also impaired response times for emergency vehicles. No separate facilities for cyclists are currently part of Central Avenue, and a sidewalk is located only on the east side of the bridge. The project intends to address these safety concerns by widening the roadway, adding travel lanes, and by providing sidewalks and bike lanes in both directions.

The City is moving forward with the environmental and engineering design phases of the project, and is pursuing additional funding of the project. The estimated project cost is $32M. The replacement bridge will support current and future capacity needs along with addressing safety concerns and improving travel times along this important regional roadway.