The Missouri Department of Transportation's findings from a comprehensive April inspection of Audrain County bridges was presented to the commissioners on Monday and the results were considered …
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![An engineer from the Missouri Department of Transportation looks over a bridge in Audrain County in April. The department's report was presented to the county on Monday. [Submitted photo]](https://beta.creativecirclecdn.com/mexicoledger/original/20210723-134558-MDOT%20inspection.jpg)
The Missouri Department of Transportation's findings from a comprehensive April inspection of Audrain County bridges was presented to the commissioners on Monday and the results were considered promising.
“All the bridges in Audrain County remain safe — if drivers follow the load limits.” reported county engineer Brian Haeffner.
MoDOT engineers inspected 236 structures, 222 of them operated by the county and 14 by the city of Mexico. They compiled notes on dozens of bridges and culverts in need of minor repair work, such as replacing guardrail bolts on a bridge on Audrain Road 449 and the removal of drift under a bridge on Road 353.
“The ones I saw that were the most critical we've already completed,” Haeffner explained.
Only two bridges were rated poor by MoDOT inspectors. One of these, on Road 448, they found issues with an abutment. It requires a layer of rock to protect the structure.
Of less concern is a structure on Road 609, which is also in need of rock to buttress an exposed piling.
The most critical problem is with a bridge over the South Fork of the Salt River on Pollock Road in Mexico. MoDOT found that the deck has suffered deterioration, heavy rusting on the beams and damage at the waterline.
The report further stated that with so many elements of the bridge rating in poor condition, the city-owned structure may need to be replaced. However, MoDOT confirmed that it remains safe to use for vehicles under 10 tons.
“That Pollock Road bridge is not in good shape,” western district commissioner Tracy Graham said. It is one of 17 in the county built before 1971.
MoDOT inspects bridges and culverts over 20 feet in length every two years. There are federal funds available for this work.
Federal funding does not apply to the more than 600 smaller structures on county roads. Residents voted in April to continue a sales tax to cover repair and replacement work on those features.
The county's allotment from the approximately $20 million of federal aid available for structural work in the state is less than $92,000. By comparison, Boone County requires $141,000. Some need more than $400,000 in funding in a fiscal year.
“We don't get much money because the county has done a good job of replacing bridges,” observed eastern district commissioner Alan Winders.
