State relief immediately needed to fix the failing structure

State Rep. Cam Cavitt on Thursday continued to urge his colleagues in state government to provide funding for an essential bridge in Cheboygan County. The Orchard Beach Bridge over the Black River is labeled by the Michigan Department of Transportation as “basically intolerable, requiring high priority of corrective action.”

“To call the bridge a ticking time bomb would be an understatement,” said Cavitt, R-Cheboygan. “The bridge is so crucial to the roadway system for local communities that it must remain open. But when you have a structure in such poor condition, fears start to arise about potential injuries if someone is driving over the bridge and it finally buckles.”

Cheboygan County officials said in January that the bridge was in imminent danger of collapsing. Cavitt said the situation has only gotten worse.

“One of the most difficult aspects to the situation is the bridge can’t just be shut down until we secure funding for repairs – it’s remained open this long for a reason,” Cavitt said. “If the Orchard Beach Bridge were to become impassable, it would create a 16-mile detour for first responders, mail carriers, school busses, and all other local traffic. So, while safety risks of the bridge remaining open pile higher, the public safety risks created by our communities losing timely access to emergency services must be taken into account.”

Replacing the bridge, first built in 1976, would cost an estimated $8.2 million. Cavitt made several funding requests during the state budget process, but all were rejected by the Democrat majority. Most recently, when the state announced its allocation decisions for federal bridge repair funding, the Orchard Beach Bridge was once again overlooked.

“I’m not sure how many different ways our community can say ‘this bridge is going to collapse,’ until the state decides to listen,” Cavitt said. “Sen. Damoose, myself, and local leaders will keep doing everything we can to explain the gravity of the situation – I only hope that someone starts to listen before the bridge collapses and lives are lost.”

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