Critical connections — that’s a fitting definition for bridges large and small across Massachusetts.
From a span that crosses the Connecticut River along Route 2 to one that goes over a culvert on an unpaved road in one of Franklin County’s towns, bridges are important parts of the infrastructure. As much as they are built to last, the public knows, these structures require maintenance and eventual replacing.
Those fixes don’t come cheap. Consider Charlemont, a community of about 1,200 residents where there are 46 bridges. There are three town bridges of 20 feet in length, making the vast majority less than 20 feet. And it’s the smaller spans where Charlemont faces a tremendous financial crunch, since these small bridges don’t qualify for federal money to fix them.
How bad is it? Charlemont’s looking at an estimated $5 million to fix or replace its failing bridges. Now $5 million is no small amount, no matter how you look at it, but it’s an even-more imposing figure when you consider that the town runs on an annual budget of $3 million.
With some 1,300 such small bridges across the state, Charlemont isn’t alone in facing a real crisis trying to get these bridges fixed. As Charlemont Selectboard Chairwoman Beth Bandy said in a Recorder story earlier this year, “It’s not just about us. None of these towns have the budgets to pull this money together quickly. We’re talking about several million dollars in Charlemont that we know about. How many other towns are in this situation?”
No doubt plenty. That’s why it is crucial for state lawmakers to back plans for a new program that will help cities and towns pay for this work. The state would chip in $50 million over five years to provide reimbursement of repairs or replacement for those bridges too small for federal money.
As Geoffrey C. Beckwith, executive director and CEO of the Massachusetts Municipal Association, put it in a letter to the state Senate Bonding Committee, “Failing bridges cause serious public safety and economic development issues. If a bridge needs to be closed due to unsafe conditions, ambulances, fire trucks and other public safety vehicles are forced to take alternate, often longer, routes to reach their destinations. Closed bridges or bridges that are not in a state of good repair also impact residents, tourism, commuters, and the delivery of services. Maintaining this vital infrastructure is a top priority for cities and towns.”
The House approved the program as part of a multi-million transportation package last month. Now it’s up to the Senate to follow through and provide Commonwealth communities with a critical financial bridge to these repairs.
It should be an easy connection for the Senate to make.