AUBURN — Representatives of the Maine Department of Transportation are scheduled to present updated plans next week for replacing the Taylor Brook bridge on Hotel Road.

The public meeting is set for 6 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 2, at Auburn Hall.

MDOT representatives are expected to detail the department’s recommendations for the project, estimated at $1.7 million.

Devan Eaton, MDOT project manager, said the replacement will represent a big change because the twin corrugated pipes will be replaced with a much wider bridge.

During a public meeting in May, Eaton said local residents near Taylor Pond, which empties into the brook, were concerned the current bridge does not allow enough water to flow out, especially during high-water events. 

“The bridge is going to a 70-foot span, which should help alleviate some of the concerns people expressed at the last meeting,” he said. 

The two culverts now under the bridge are about 12 feet wide, Eaton said, adding that while the current bridge is not causing flooding concerns, it does not allow water to leave the pond during high-water events. 

“It wasn’t causing the backups,” he said, “but it wasn’t helping.”

The bridge is just north of the intersection of Hotel Road and Chicoine Avenue.

Eaton said the replacement project comes as the result of biannual bridge inspections by the MDOT. He said the steel pipes installed in 1981 did not hold up as long as expected. Most projects are designed to last 75 to 100 years, he said. 

When coming up with a design, he said rehabbing the bridge was considered but deemed not viable financially given the number of years the repairs would hold. 

Wednesday’s meeting will provide residents the opportunity to give feedback on the proposed design. 

A public notice for the meeting states, “MaineDOT is particularly interested in learning local views relative to project consistency with local comprehensive plans, discovering local resources, and identifying local concerns and issues.”

Eaton said Wednesday’s meeting will gather final opinions from the public so MDOT can nail down a final design. 

Construction on the new bridge is scheduled for the summer of 2020. 

The Bicycle Coalition of Maine, which has teamed up with the MDOT on a number of meetings, including a series on pedestrian safety called “Heads Up,” described the meeting as “an opportunity to raise concerns, to bring ideas, and to promote the importance of making roads safe and comfortable for pedestrians and bicyclists. As we have learned, having input at the initial design stages can make a real difference.” 

Other Auburn projects still in the design phase:

• A Hotel Road reconstruction project from Lewiston Junction Road to East Hardscrabble Road.

•  Two projects in downtown Auburn aimed at improving pedestrian traffic and safety. These include the intersection of Academy, High, Elm and Main streets, where there will be upgrades to comply wit the Americans with Disabilities Act and to improve traffic signals; a new sidewalk on the west side of Minot Avenue, from Elm to High streets; and traffic-calming measures at the intersection of High and Elm streets, which is the 12th-highest crash location in Maine.

Similar upgrades are slated for the intersection of Main, Mill and Broad streets.

arice@sunjournal.com 

A bridge on Hotel Road that spans Taylor Brook will be replaced in 2020. A meeting next week will detail the proposed design. The bridge is just north of the intersection of Hotel Road and Chicoine Avenue, where the road passes over the brook. (Google image)