Structure 1338 · Litchfield County, CT

Route 128 over Housatonic River

Carries Route 128 over Housatonic River, .05mi E Of US Route 7 Jct.

Overall conditionFair

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

How ratings work
Deck6/9 · Satisfactory
Superstructuresets the rating5/9 · Fair
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 FT173 FT OVERALL25 FT0ELEVATION · LENGTHS TO SCALE
Deck 6/9Superstructure 5/9 · sets the ratingSubstructure 5/9 · sets the rating

173 ft end to end, longest span 95 ft: about 2 semi-trucks nose to tail. 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 an orthotropic-deck bridge.

Built1841rebuilt 1973
Length172.6 ft52.6 m
Daily traffic1,100counted 2021
Last inspectedJuly 2024every 24 months

Location

StateConnecticut
CountyLitchfield
Location.05mi E Of US Route 7 Jct
CarriesRoute 128
CrossesHousatonic River
Coordinates41.87156, -73.36377

Physical Characteristics

MaterialSteel Continuous
DesignOrthotropic
Total Length172.6 ft (52.6 m)
Max Span95.1 ft (29 m)
Deck Width17.1 ft (5.2 m)
Deck Area273.5 sq m
Main Spans2
Year Built1841 (reconstructed 1973)

Traffic

Avg Daily Traffic1,100 (2021)
Lanes On Bridge1

Inspection & Ownership

Last InspectionJuly 2024
Inspection FrequencyEvery 24 months
OwnerState Highway Agency
Historical SignificanceBridge is on the National Register of Historic Places
Scour Critical3 — Scour critical
Structure Number01338

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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