WCAX.COM Local Vermont News, Weather and Sports-Commuters Stymied by Bridge Closure

Commuters Stymied by Bridge Closure

Addison, Vermont - Saturday, October

The Crown Point Bridge is closed, and that means ferries on Lake Champlain are busy. "We've been swamped with people," said Alison Matot with Fort Ticonderoga Ferry.

Transportation officials shut down the 80 year old bridge Friday after inspectors discovered an eroding concrete pier near water's surface. They fear the bridge could collapse if it remains open. "There's nothing political here," said John Zicconi with the Vt. Transportation Agency. "This is engineers and inspectors who found that something could be physically wrong with the bridge."

Crews had been working on the bridge for several months making other unrelated improvements and were actually about to reopen the bridge from one, to two lane traffic.

The bridge could now remain closed most of the winter. Under water divers will spend the next week or two assessing the problem, followed by repairs that could take months. "How far into the winter is the open question now. We don't know enough to know, but it's not something that we'll be able to have fixed very quickly," said Zicconi.

Upwards of four thousand people use the bridge every day, and hundreds use it to commute to and from work. Neither the state nor the federal highway administration reimburse businesses or commuters for bridge closures, which means some will be scrambling to find ways to get to work. "Addison and the smaller towns are going to suffer horrendously. If you have a diner or a bait shop or anything you're using in the fall or winter, I think they're going to have a big economic crush over there, said Chips Hanson of Stowe.

Area ferry companies are ramping up service. Lake Champlain Ferries is adding an additional trip between Charlotte and Essex -- and is also prepared to add an extra boat. "The demand is unknown and we're ramping up to full summer schedule, plus," said Heather Stewart of Lake Champlain Ferries.

Further south in Shoreham, owners of the Ticonderoga cable ferry are planning to stay open until the lake freezes or the bridge is fixed. They've also expanded their hours and are staying open after dark. "They brought down generators and lights from what I understand to shine across the lake," said Matot.

Meanwhile, the long term future of the bridge is uncertain. A major rehab or complete replacement is scheduled for 2013, but that could change depending on the scope of the damage to the pier.

Keagan Harsha - WCAX News