Bridge deck has been poured
Contractor wants more time to finish
Workers prepare one of the sidewalks on the new Clinch River Bridge in Clinton for the pouring of concrete.
Also, still to be built are the approaches to carry traffic onto the bridge, which will replace the current Lewallen Bridge connecting Clinton and South Clinton.
In late April, at the end of the 32nd month of the 36-month project, “The concrete bridge deck is complete, and crews continue forming and pouring the concrete sidewalks and the adjoining parapet walls,” a city report said.
“Rather than a solid parapet wall, a decorative concrete wall with openings between columns is being built. Building concrete forms for the decorative style wall is more labor-intensive and time-consuming, as compared to a solid wall,” it said.
After that work is done and streetlights are installed, the contractor will begin building the approach roadways on both sides of the river, the city report noted.
But the new bridge will not see a full traffic flow right away.
After the approaches are built, two northbound lanes of traffic will begin using the new bridge, while southbound traffic will continue to use the old bridge until all other work is finished, the report noted.
Then the new bridge will be opened for all traffic, and the old bridge – known locally as the Green Bridge – will be closed and demolished..
The contract called for the work to be completed by Aug. 31, but the contractor is negotiating with the Tennessee Department of Transportation for an extension of an unspecified length of time, and TDOT will make the decision on the extension, the city report said.
No formal request has come from the contractor for an extension of the deadline, however, TDOT said Tuesday.
“The current completion date remains Aug. 31,” TDOT spokesman Mark Nagi said. “There are some utility adjustments that could possibly require some additional time. … But we have not spoken to the contractor formally about any additional time changes to this project. We are still going with the Aug. 31 completion date.”
Cold weather and some COVID-19 problems led to some delays for the contractor, said Lynn Murphy, the city’s liaison with TDOT on the Lewallen Bridge replacement project.
The approach to the new bridge, traveling northbound on Clinch Avenue from South Clinton, adds a 463-foot length of new asphalt.
This approach includes a painted median divider (11 feet wide on the approach, narrowing to eight feet wide on the bridge deck), which creates a safety buffer to separate opposing traffic, Murphy said.
The southbound approach from Charles G. Seivers Boulevard/Tennessee 61 adds a 265-foot length of new asphalt between Tennessee 61 and the concrete bridge deck.