Oldtown, MD toll bridge

[hbelkins]

What if Corridor H had been planned as an extension of Corridor D (US 50 coming east from Cincinnati) instead of the route it's currently on?

(And I would advocate Ohio transferring US 50 to Corridor D and renumbering existing US 50 as an Ohio state route.)

[froggie]

I agree with you.  But consider that one of its purposes is to induce demand, which will hopefully stimulate economic activity in a part of the United States that could use same.

It'd take *A LOT* of demand inducement in order to reach a traffic level that would justify 4 lanes.  I just don't see it happening.

As for upgrading U.S. 50 across the Potomac Highlands (Grant, Mineral, and Hampshire Counties, W.Va.), I suppose it could be done (it's been four lane divided in Virginia for as long as I can remember, though I believe that is a different alignment from the original U.S. 50 between Winchester and the W.Va. border), and such improvements would probably benefit Romney.

But to upgrade 50 to something like Corridor H would probably require an entirely new highway on a new alignment.  Not sure it would be worthwhile to try and build a four lane expressway-type road along existing U.S. 50.  Clearly the existing U.S. 50 right-of-way does not have room for that.

Considering that the completed portions of Corridor H are largely themselves on new alignment, rather than an upgrade of previously-existing WV 55, the situation would not have been much different on US 50.  A US 50 corridor alignment vice WV 55 would be much the same as what they're doing now:  a mostly new-alignment 4-lane limited access corridor.

What if Corridor H had been planned as an extension of Corridor D (US 50 coming east from Cincinnati) instead of the route it's currently on?

(And I would advocate Ohio transferring US 50 to Corridor D and renumbering existing US 50 as an Ohio state route.)

Probably would've gotten noticably more traffic than the current Corridor H routing, which would further help justify the expense.  And moving US 50 to the OH 32 corridor should happen anyway, IMO.

[Bitmapped]

It looks like the Oldtown Toll Bridge has been basically destroyed by recent flooding.  Take a look at this picture: https://twitter.com/demkeJN/status/477649908858507264

[algorerhythms]

It's been damaged by flooding in the past and repaired (the 1996 flood comes to mind), though I'm not sure if the damage from previous floods was anywhere near that bad.

[cpzilliacus]

It looks like the Oldtown Toll Bridge has been basically destroyed by recent flooding.  Take a look at this picture: https://twitter.com/demkeJN/status/477649908858507264

Impressive!  I think it's the debris in the river, not the water, that does most of the damage. 

I read someplace (might have been on TOLLROADSNews when Peter Samuel ran it) that the design of the bridge is such that the deck is all wood and fairly easy and inexpensive to repair, but if the piers in the bed of the Potomac River are damaged, then it is much more expensive and complex to fix. Either way, I understand that a bridge inspector from the State Highway Administration has to come out and check the work once repairs are complete before they can open to traffic again.

[hbelkins]

I don't remember hearing about any recent heavy rain or flooding in the upper Potomac watershed. When did this happen?

[algorerhythms]

There's been very heavy rain leading to flash flooding in that area over the past few days (video showing damage in Cresaptown).

[cpzilliacus]

I don't remember hearing about any recent heavy rain or flooding in the upper Potomac watershed. When did this happen?

Same heavy rain event(s) in May that caused a fair amount of flooding in and around Washington, D.C. and Baltimore.

[Bitmapped]

I don't remember hearing about any recent heavy rain or flooding in the upper Potomac watershed. When did this happen?

Same heavy rain event(s) in May that caused a fair amount of flooding in and around Washington, D.C. and Baltimore.

This was a different event that occurred last week.

[ixnay]

I don't remember hearing about any recent heavy rain or flooding in the upper Potomac watershed. When did this happen?

Same heavy rain event(s) in May that caused a fair amount of flooding in and around Washington, D.C. and Baltimore.

This was a different event that occurred last week.

http://www.your4state.com/story/d/story/cresaptown-cleans-up-after-storm-floods/61109/9-NHXSvBp0KYV7h6_2Cv7Q
http://www.your4state.com/story/d/story/flooding-road-closures/15898/LN0Cv8CAjU6VcGEqHjl2ng

ixnay

[algorerhythms]

Repairs to Oldtown Bridge could take months

[cpzilliacus]

WVGazette.com: Repaired western Md. toll bridge to W.Va. reopens

OLDTOWN, Md. — A Potomac River toll bridge linking Allegany County to Green Spring, West Virginia, is back in business.

The Cumberland Times-News reports that the reopening Tuesday of the Oldtown Bridge comes about 10 weeks after it was damaged by flooding.

[cpzilliacus]

Cumberland Times-News: Bridge back in business

OLDTOWN – There's good news for travelers who have relied on a low-water bridge over the Potomac River to get back and forth between eastern Allegany County and the Green Spring, W.Va., area. The Oldtown Bridge will be open Tuesday at 5 a.m., said Lori Roberts. Roberts owns the bridge through her company, Historical Oldtown Bridge Preservation, LLC.

Although Roberts had been concerned that the bridge would be out of commission for as long as several months, once work got started a few weeks ago, repairs seemed to move quickly.

The bridge was washed out in June flooding, leaving commuters and other travelers feeling the pinch of paying for extra gas and losing time. The bridge is the only crossing of the river for 15 miles in either direction.

Flood damage to the bridge included portions of the decking being washed away and twisting of steel support beams, Dick DeVore, Allegany County director of emergency services, has said.