FARMINGTON — The Maine Department of Transportation sponsored a public hearing Tuesday night to discuss improvements to the Farmington Falls bridge.

Those improvements, using state and federal funds, include spending $285,000 for preliminary engineering and project design. Another $15,000 is available for right-of-way expenses.

Information on river hydraulics, aerial and underground utilities, environmental factors, cultural or historical considerations and impacts on abutters will be gathered through summer 2019. A public hearing will be held in the fall of 2019 to discuss the final design. 

The project is expected to be advertised in the summer of 2020, with construction running from the winter of 2020 to summer of 2021.

The concrete bridge with reinforced abutments was built in 1931. It has a roadway width of 22 feet. The piers were rehabilitated in 2011.

Project Manager Chris Sichak said the bridge deck and superstructure are in poor condition.

Estimated daily traffic over the bridge in 2020 will be 4,270 vehicles.

Maine DOT project manager Joe Stilwell said the current alignment of the bridge is one of many factors to be considered.  

Anstiss Morrill spoke of the flood of 1987, when the bridge was underwater.

“We were asked to evacuate,” said Mike Collins, who lives on the east side of Route 2. “We were an island.”

Abutter Neil Sawyer said there has been a dramatic increase in traffic, especially trucks. He feared widening the bridge would increase the volume of traffic.

“We hear them most of the day, half the night,” Sawyer said. “Traffic noise will increase with more traffic.”

Stilwell said the bridge is undersized.

Robert Rogers said there is a truss bridge over Wilson Stream half a mile away. He asked if there was a way to move the bridge and reroute traffic.

“If you continue on Route 2 and cross further up, there’s a straighter shot toward the Whittier Road,” Rogers said. “It would eliminate heavy truck traffic trying to avoid Farmington.”

Collins said vehicles coming from Route 156 and turning left over the bridge are often running the stop sign there, which is a safety issue.

Stilwell said the intersections and approaches on both sides will be included in the design scope.

Morrill said there are historical structures on both sides of the river that she hoped would remain.

Stilwell said it is a balancing act to have a design that meets the needs of the public. 

“Newer standards are in place,” Stilwell said. “The bridge would likely need to be wider for the traffic.”

Rogers said it is a different world from when the bridge was built.

Concerns about the safety of pedestrians crossing the bridge were raised. Also mentioned were the church and businesses still operating in the area. 

Pastor Sharon Morse asked what the buyout process and timeline would be for properties affected by bridge improvements.

Stilwell said there would be a minimum of nine months notice before advertising the project.

“What happens to that bridge,” Rogers said, “will affect the community.”

pharnden@sunmediagroup.net

Project Manager Chris Sichak with the engineering firm Erdman Anthony addresses attendees Tuesday night at a public hearing in Farmington. Plans for future improvements to the Farmington Falls bridge on Routes 41 and 156 were discussed. (Pam Harnden/Livermore Falls Advertiser)