HOWLAND, Maine — Gerard St. Cyr loves the new Piscataquis River bridge, but he will miss the men and women who helped build it.
“The new bridge looks excellent. I am pleased with how it came out,” the owner of The Corner Store said Tuesday. “I like that it is a lot wider. I especially like the sidewalk, which we can use for snowmobiles this year, and ATVs for when the trail comes through.”
Maine Department of Transportation and Cianbro Corp. workers opened the new $10 million bridge to traffic Friday, after Maine Department of Transportation inspectors signed off on the work. Now workers have to dismantle the old bridge. That work is ongoing and should be done by mid-December, said Archie Wheaton, project superintendent for Cianbro.
“It’s going great,” Wheaton said. “We just have a little bit of cosmetic landscaping to do [with the new bridge], and some paving.”
The bridge’s lighting might be the most significant difference noticeable between it and the old span, Wheaton said.
“It lights up the whole area and it looks great,” he said.
Town officials have heralded the bridge work as among the many steps they are undertaking to revitalize downtown Howland. Begun two years ago, the bridge features a wide sidewalk — ample walking, cycling, ATV and snowmobile riding space — and a gentle sloping uphill and curve.
The project also features a new traffic circle, new lighting and pavement. The three-span plate girder bridge won’t need to be entirely replaced until at least 2112, officials have said.
The bridge is a key component to the Seboeis Stream ATV Club’s efforts to plug downtown Howland into the statewide network of all-terrain vehicle trails, Town Manager Jane Jones said. The Board of Selectmen will consider on Oct. 1 or 14 supporting the club’s proposal to increase access points from the network into downtown, she said.
“That again will be to allow ATV access to the main part of the community, and eventually we hope that they will be able to cross not only this new bridge but also the tannery site, which is planned to have an ATV access point there,” Jones said, “and then go on across the Penobscot River.”
For decades a blighted group of buildings at what was once the town’s largest employer, the former Howland tannery building adjoins the bridge and town river landing and is being razed to make way for a fish bypass. The cleanup continues. Selectmen plan to redevelop the multi-acre property as a commercial or industrial site with recreational trails and park benches.
Maine Department of Transportation officials also plan to replace the Penobscot River bridge about a mile southeast of the Piscataquis River bridge within the next few years. Selectmen are pushing state officials to build ATV and snowmobile space onto that bridge as well, Jones said.
Bridge construction hasn’t been without problems. A Cianbro Corp. bucket truck’s arm was extended enough to knock a power line onto a passing car on Coffin Street and cause 1,100 utility customers to lose electricity for several hours in late August. Cianbro and a federal safety agency are investigating the accident.
A neighbor to the new traffic circle has complained that workers inadvertently cut her access to her own driveway, a problem that appeared to be remedied Tuesday.
St. Cyr’s only regret about the new project: No longer will so many construction workers be shopping at his store. They were good customers, he said. At its peak, the bridge work used 20 construction workers, while the bridge demolition work will need only eight to 10, Wheaton said.
They say all roads lead to Rome. But not if there’s a traffic circle involved. I’m glad the poor woman got someone to let her access her own driveway.
I saw the flood that went through the late 80’s, and that store was basically wiped out. That bridge is a significant improvement and that area deserved it.
How can a person operate an ATV on a town owned road without proof of insurance. What happens when one of these units runs into a vehicle, who is going to cover the damage? Maine law requires vecicles to have insurance to be able to operate on a public way so do they check ATV’s as well?
Thats why you carry uninsuard an underinsuard
Oh, here we go again.
I don’t know, but I like how we’re just abandoning everything that was once known about the uses of roads. Check out that phrasing: “… the bridge features a wide sidewalk — ample walking, cycling, ATV and snowmobile riding space. ” Years ago, when I was taught what things were for, it was very strongly stressed that you don’t ride your bicycle on the sidewalk, nor your ATV or snowmobile on anything that could even be mistaken for a public road, much less the sidewalk. Not any more, apparently! Now it seems the sidewalk is for anything that’s not a car. So never mind what happens when an ATV hits a car, that’s the least of the problems this interesting new take on road usage is inviting.
Dear DOT: You’re kidding with the rotary, right? OK, joke’s over, you got us. You can put the proper intersection back now.
i love roundabouts. much better traffic flow than other types of intersections. Unfortunately some drivers are too stupid to properly navigate them.
We need a live traffic cam setup at the rotary and the benny hill theme song.
Right, ’cause what Howland desperately needed was improved traffic efficiency.
Because there is so much traffic through Howland…. I thought that was another silly use of government money. That, and I hate traffic circles.
Oh yes if you have not experienced the Howland Rotary and need a good laugh–. Honest to God really 10 million dollars of taxpayers money I really wonder how these people come up with these ideas. I wonder how the town ever survived for 70 or 80 years, believe me the traffic in this area is not what one would call heavy. But I guess as long as the ATV and snowmobile club can link the trails now its worth it————not.
Hang on, I just realized what’s wrong with the rotary, apart from the fact that it’s completely unnecessary in that location – no statue. It needs a statue with a flower garden around the base. The traditional thing would be a Civil War general on horseback, but in this context I think a nice full-scale bronze of Governor LePage standing next to a DOT pickup in that raised-finger Now See Here pose from the Republican state convention stock photo – you know the one, the BDN’s been using it for months – would be most appropriate.
Many of those old statues should have “drugs sold here” signs added to them.
In the middle of a rotary? Those are some intrepid junkies. I have to give them credit for that.