www.roanoke.com

Richard L. Caywood

Caywood is the Salem District administrator for the Virginia Department of Transportation.

Re: "Narrows bridge plan brings joy, worry," June 23 news story:

I am pleased with the recent interest The Roanoke Times has shown in the Narrows Route 61 bridge replacement project, which is one of the largest American Reinvestment and Recovery Act (stimulus) projects in our area.

This project highlights the growing number of critical bridge needs across the commonwealth. The Virginia 61 bridge in Narrows is almost 60 years old and is one of the lowest-rated bridge structures on our regional primary highway network.

I share the concerns of the citizens and business owners in Narrows regarding the potential loss of connectivity during the bridge replacement project. Decisions regarding maintenance of traffic are always a critical component in any highway or bridge project.

The recent articles in The Times may have given the impression that the Virginia Department of Transportation is not considering any options to maintain traffic across the bridge during its reconstruction. This is not the case.

VDOT and an engineering firm are in the process of initial design work on the project, including the exploration of potential options to maintain at least one lane of traffic during the majority of the construction of the new bridge. We are open to any option that will fit the project budget and the time-line requirements of the stimulus package.

While the final design and sequence of construction of the new bridge has not yet been determined, the most important fact for the town of Narrows is that a new bridge will be constructed.

Without the current stimulus project, the town would be faced with the prospect of the near-term closure of the existing bridge as its condition continues to deteriorate. Due to the high cost of the replacement bridge and the current state of transportation funding, such a closure could have lasted for many years.

With the inclusion of this important project in the commonwealth's stimulus program, Narrows will avoid the risk of a very long-term closure of its key transportation link.

All of us at VDOT look forward to continuing to work with the town and its residents as this project moves forward. We are also planning to host a meeting with the citizens of Narrows on July 16 to share our initial work on the project.