Structure 3138 · Hancock County, ME

Airline RD over West Branch Union River

Carries Airline RD over West Branch Union River, 0.7 Mi W Of Jct RTE 181.

Overall conditionFair

Set by its lowest-rated component: Deck and Substructure at 5 of 9.

How ratings work
Decksets the rating5/9 · Fair
Superstructure6/9 · Satisfactory
Substructuresets the rating5/9 · Fair
Channelnot part of overall6/9 · Satisfactory
0 failed4 poor6 fair9 excellent

Elevation

Side view, colored by inspection rating
SEMI-TRUCK · 72 FT127 FT OVERALL25 FT0ELEVATION · LENGTHS TO SCALE
Deck 5/9 · sets the ratingSuperstructure 6/9Substructure 5/9 · sets the rating

127 ft end to end. Lengths and the semi-truck on the deck are drawn to the same scale. Each part is colored by its latest inspection rating. The inventory records lengths but not heights or the layout of the shorter spans, so those are drawn as typical for a multi-beam bridge.

Built197353 years old
Length126.6 ft38.6 m
Daily traffic3,693counted 2016
Last inspectedOctober 2024every 24 months

Location

StateMaine
CountyHancock
Location0.7 Mi W Of Jct RTE 181
CarriesAirline RD
CrossesWest Branch Union River
Coordinates44.82728, -68.37571

Physical Characteristics

MaterialSteel
DesignStringer/Multi-beam
Total Length126.6 ft (38.6 m)
Max Span122.0 ft (37.2 m)
Deck Width40.7 ft (12.4 m)
Deck Area478.6 sq m
Main Spans1
Year Built1973

Traffic

Avg Daily Traffic3,693 (2016)
Truck Traffic5%
Lanes On Bridge2

Inspection & Ownership

Last InspectionOctober 2024
Inspection FrequencyEvery 24 months
OwnerState Highway Agency
Historical SignificanceHistorical significance is not determined
Scour Critical4 — Foundations need monitoring
Structure Number3138

How Bridge Ratings Work

Inspectors rate each major part of a bridge (the deck you drive on, the superstructure of beams that holds it up, and the substructure of piers and abutments beneath) on a 0–9 scale. A bridge's overall condition is its lowest of those ratings, so one deteriorated component makes the whole bridge "poor."

0Failed
1Imminent failure
2Critical
3Serious
4Poor
5Fair
6Satisfactory
7Good
8Very good
9Excellent
Good · lowest component 7–9
Fair · lowest component 5–6
Poor · lowest component 0–4

A poor rating is not a closure. It means the bridge is flagged for priority repair or replacement; bridges judged unsafe are closed or posted with weight limits. The waterway (channel) rating is reported, but it does not count toward the overall classification.

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