Viaduct to be demolished?

COLUMBUS -- The 33rd Avenue viaduct may need to be demolished all at once rather than the previously planned partial closures and reconstruction.

The possibility came to light when recent inspections found greater deterioration than expected.

A special meeting of the City Council is scheduled for March 31, and the city and state are working to coordinate efforts regarding how to proceed.

City Administrator Joseph Mangiamelli said the inspection results should not affect anyone’s driving habits, but probably will affect the schedule of and method used during reconstruction of the viaduct.

The $8.7 million project of the 33rd Avenue viaduct, which carries traffic from U.S. Highways 81 and 30, was expected to take two years with construction scheduled to begin in October.

The viaduct, built in 1930 and widened in 1978, carried about 20,000 vehicles each day in 2006.

The initial replacement plan was to work on the eastern two lanes to maintain two-lane traffic, with one lane in each direction on the western side and reversing the procedure when the eastern half was complete.

With the latest information, Mangiamelli said, the entire viaduct may have to be brought down at once, but more information will be made available following a conference call planned today with the Nebraska Department of Roads (NDOR). The city and NDOR are expected to discuss the current situation and status of the viaduct and converse about a possible change in the 33rd Avenue viaduct reconstruction schedule.

As for citizen’s safety, “presently, we have not determined it (the viaduct) to not be a safe structure,” Mangiamelli said. “We don’t think it is unsafe at the present time.”