Some residents living along George Ford Road will have to take a detour to access U.S. 11 for about two months while work replaces an aging bridge along that road.
County Engineer Les Dungan said the work is part of the county’s effort to replace aging bridges, especially those with a sufficiency rating of 50 or less.
The bridge on George Ford Road in question is east of Burgetown Road and has a sufficiency rating of 34.7, according to the Mississippi State Aid Roads website. It was built in 1965.
Residents living on the east side of the bridge closer to U.S. 11 will not be affected.
Dungan said the designer of the bridge at that time thought using treated lumber for the substructure would last just as long as concrete, but now those pilings are in need of replacement.
Of the nearly 170 bridges in the county, about 32 still need to be replaced because they have a sufficiency rating of less than 50, Dungan said.
The work to replace the George Ford Road bridge will begin on April 4. Once work begins residents living past the bridge from U.S. 11, which is past the intersection of Burgetown Road, will need to utilize detours.
About 1,000 feet of the road will be improved as part of the work, along with replacing the wood piling bridge with a concrete piling version capable of supporting 80,000 pounds. The current bridge is rated low weight, capable of supporting up to five tons, or 10,000 pounds.
Pearl River Paving Company out of Carriere won the project with a bid of $293,161.
All county bridges are inspected on a regular basis. Dungan said bridges that are in good condition are inspected every two years, but bridges with known deficiencies are inspected every year.
This project will be funded with state aid funds, Dungan said.