By Robert Tomlinson
News Director
CENTREVILLE — The Langley Covered Bridge outside of Centreville is closed to traffic for at least the next two weeks after both height limiters in the area were hit last week.
Road Commission Manager John Lindsey said the height limiter on the south side of the bridge was hit on Monday, Dec. 2 by a truck pulling a utility trailer, while the limiter on the north side of the bridge was hit on Saturday, Dec. 7 by a pickup truck with a camper trailer.
Both trailers exceeded the height limit of 7 feet that is set for the historic bridge.
The incidents knocked over both limiters to the ground, and also damaged the concrete bases on each side of the limiters. No damage to the Covered Bridge itself was reported.
“Fortunately, both of these were hit in such a way that we are going to be able to salvage the height limiter,” Lindsey said in an interview Monday. “We have them back here at our place, we’ll have to cut off the bases and weld a new base on and straighten them out a bit, but they are going to be able to be put back up.”
Both drivers were ticketed by police for disregarding traffic control devices, such as signs. Lindsey added that the cost of the damage to the limiters will be paid for by the drivers involved in both incidents.
The estimated time it might take to get the height limiters up, and therefore re-open the Covered Bridge to traffic, is about two weeks, according to Lindsey.
This is not the first time the height limiters have been hit by vehicles and trailers that are too tall to go through. Lindsey said the limiters are hit at an average of once every year, which causes the bridge to close due to liability issues.
“The bridge is very exposed without the height limiters. We just spent $3.2 million refurbing the Covered Bridge, and we’d sure hate to see something really big, really tall, and really heavy go through it right now. That’s why we have the road closed,” Lindsey said.
The height limit of the Covered Bridge is 7 feet, while the weight limit is 3 tons.
Once the bridge is reopened, Lindsey said drivers should know the height and weight of their vehicle before attempting to cross the bridge, and to pay attention to the numerous signs on roads just outside the bridge on both sides letting drivers know of the height limits, weight limits, alternate routes, and even a sign to let drivers with oversized vehicles or trailers know, “No Trucks; Your GPS is Wrong.”
“People don’t read the signs; people don’t pay attention. Probably the biggest culprit is the GPS sends them that way, so they don’t pay any attention to the signage we have, they’re just following their GPS,” Lindsey said.
Detours around the Covered Bridge include Schweitzer Road on the south side of the bridge to Angevine going east or to M-60 going west, while on the north side of the bridge, drivers are asked to take Leland Road to M-60 going west or to Angevine Road going east.
Robert Tomlinson can be reached at 279-7488 or robert@wilcoxnewspapers.com.
