By Marty Trese, KnoxPages.com Editor
HOWARD – Motorists hoping to drive the Magers Road bridge which spans the Little Jelloway Creek from Howard-Danville Road to Cornish Road will have to wait at least two more years. That section of Magers had been used by residents as one of the few roadways to access the east side of Apple Valley.
County Engineer Cameron Keaton told KnoxPages.com the bridge was closed in November of 2016 due to excessive deterioration of the steel beams. Keaton said he applied for emergency bridge funds through the Ohio Public Works Commission and received a letter last month that the bridge was not approved for funding. Earlier this month, Keaton contacted the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) to see if it would be possible to substitute the Magers Road bridge for another bridge that was already funded through the ODOT Local Bridge Replacement (LBR) program.
This section of Magers Road near Howard will remain closed due to structural problems on the bridge for at least two more years – KP Photo
ODOT agreed to switch the bridges out and the Magers Road bridge construction project is scheduled to begin in July of 2019. Completion will likely be in October or November of that year.
The bridge will be a total replacement at an estimated construction cost of $377,000.
Keaton said, “By using ODOT LBR funding, Knox County will only have to pay 5% of the total cost of construction,” approximately $18,850.
