Sunday, December 13, 2009

Dangerous Bridge



I've lived in Alsea for 8 1/2 years. There is a bridge on Highway 34 between Alsea and Philomath that I feel is dangerous.

The photo above is of the bridge crossing the North Fork of the Alsea River at Fish Hatchery Road on Highway 34 facing west on the way to Alsea. It is a blind curve when you come around the corner from Alsea because the brush isn't cut making oncoming traffic invisible. The bridge is narrow, too narrow. The sign says that no pedestrians are to walk on the bridge, however, I have witnessed several times when this rule was not followed. The sign "One Way Traffic for Trucks and Buses" is confusing. What does this mean? Who has the right of way--cars or trucks and buses? I have seen black skid marks on the pavement several times, especially during the summer on both sides of the bridge. One time when I came around the corner going east towards Philomath, I had to quickly stop at the side before the bridge because a logging truck was in the center of the bridge straddling the yellow line going towards Alsea. Years ago my husband came upon this bridge going east and found people walking on the bridge, cars parked on the bridge, and motorcycles were headed towards the bridge coming from the opposite direction. He crashed into the side of the bridge so he wouldn't hit anyone. This is not a safe intersection or bridge. It needs to be fixed.

What needs to be done to fix the problem? In my opinion, the bridge needs to be widened and a pedestrian walkway needs to be on the other side of the bridge railing. It's a fact that people need to go from one side of the bridge to another because this is a big fishing spot where people come from all over to catch salmon. The sides of the road needs to be cleared of all brush so you can see around the blind corner. The signs needs to be changed. In my opinion, this is a serious accident waiting to happen. Why do changes like this come only after several fatalities? Why can't people recognize the danger and fix it?

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