Rolling Over the River Again

Just in time for a busy summer tourist season, and to the relief of many local drivers, some long-term road work is behind them now and traffic can once again flow freely across the Park Street Bridge in Great Barrington.

The temporary signals at either end of the 108-foot bridge which allowed access to one lane of Route 183 traffic at a time have been removed and full two lane travel is back. The Berkshire Eagle reported that a construction supervisor with JH Maxymillian who was at the site Wednesday said finishing touches,like applying blacktop and doing some utility work,should be done in about three weeks.

In 2015  the Massachusetts DOT declared the span structurally deficient. Work began the following summer, with the agency saying it would be replacing the bridge superstructure, including new pre-stressed concrete beams, deck, railings and sidewalks. As construction proceeded, workers found more damage than they had anticipated. A temporary bridge was then installed. Several shutdowns to the span repeatedly snarled traffic, even causing school bus delays.

Although the Park Street Bridge project took longer than planned, traffic is once again rolling across the Housatonic River on Route 183.