The Coloma Road bridge over the Paw Paw River could reopen next week after the Berrien County Road Department closed it for some unscheduled repairs last month.
The road department’s Adri Boone tells us the surface of the bridge was damaged, exposing some of the internal structure.
“Some of that material had chipped away, exposing the actual structure of the bridge,” Boone said. “So what we ultimately, our construction crew and team, worked to remove the bad portions of that surface, put some more rebar and other materials in that, and then basically enable us to pour new bridge surface.”
That new surface has been poured, and now the road department is waiting for it to dry before conducting some stress tests. Once that’s all done, likely next week, the bridge will be reopened.
Boone says the bridge has been closed to all traffic, requiring drivers to detour over to Kerlikowske Road, Red Arrow Highway, and I-196.
Last week, the Berrien County Board of Commissioners approved an application for funding to replace the bridge through the Michigan Department of Transportation’s Local Bridge Program. Its resolution notes the Coloma Road bridge was built in 1966 and is now in a state of deterioration.
