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The Next Champlain Bridge

Burlington, Vermont - November 11, 2009

Lorraine Franklin had mixed reactions to news Monday that the iconic, yet unsafe, Champlain Bridge between Addison, Vt., and Crown Point, N.Y., would be demolished.

"Having lived in the area for 30 years, it becomes part of you, who you are, and you hate to see it go," Franklin said.

There are no plans yet for when or how the 80-year-old bridge will be torn down or rebuilt. Franklin has some ideas.

"I think we'd all love to see something as beautiful as this one," she said. "There's no reason something as beautiful can't be the next step forward for us."

But UVM engineering professor Dryver Huston, who has expertise in bridges, says it's unlikely a new span would look the same as the old one.

"We would certainly build it differently," Huston said. "One of the issues is that bridge had a lot of truss work. Truss work, if it's done nicely, can have a very elegant look to it, but it's very expensive on the maintenance, painting the trusses, et cetera."

Huston says technology has improved since the old bridge was built in the 1920s. Modern designs like that recently used on the Big Dig in Boston use higher strength steel and need less maintenance.

"The materials have certainly become much better," he explained. "The steels have become much stronger and are less prone to catastrophic failures and fractures. The concretes have also become much better, less prone to freeze/thaw. We understand how to reinforce them better. We can also make bridges that are easier to maintain and that's a big factor because is expensive."

Vermont Transportation Secretary David Dill says the cost of construction and maintenance will certainly be a factor. But the new design will likely incorporate the bridge's historic nature.

"We're going to have meetings with citizens' groups on both sides," Dill said. "Clearly there's a strong interest in the community, I think, to retain the character of the bridge. I expect we'll hear that a lot and that will heavily influence the design of the replacement bridge."

The existing bridge was built 80 years ago with an expected life span of 70 years. Even with modern technology and design, Huston says it's hard to predict how long a new bridge will last.

Kate Duffy - WCAX News

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