Structure 357 · Alpena County, MI

Second Avenue over Thunder Bay River

Carries Second Avenue over Thunder Bay River, 0.2 Mi E Of Us23.

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 overall7/9 · Good
0 failed4 poor6 fair9 excellent

Elevation

Side view, colored by inspection rating
SEMI-TRUCK · 72 FT264 FT OVERALL50 FT0ELEVATION · LENGTHS TO SCALE
Deck 6/9Superstructure 5/9 · sets the ratingSubstructure 5/9 · sets the rating

264 ft end to end: about 4 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 a bascule bridge (drawn closed).

Built1939rebuilt 1988
Length264.4 ft80.6 m
Daily traffic15,700counted 2016
Last inspectedJuly 2023every 24 months

Location

StateMichigan
CountyAlpena
Location0.2 Mi E Of Us23
CarriesSecond Avenue
CrossesThunder Bay River
Coordinates45.06390, -83.43060

Physical Characteristics

MaterialSteel
DesignMovable - Bascule
Total Length264.4 ft (80.6 m)
Max Span127.0 ft (38.7 m)
Deck Width62.0 ft (18.9 m)
Deck Area1523.3 sq m
Main Spans1
Year Built1939 (reconstructed 1988)

Traffic

Avg Daily Traffic15,700 (2016)
Truck Traffic6%
Lanes On Bridge3

Inspection & Ownership

Last InspectionJuly 2023
Inspection FrequencyEvery 24 months
OwnerCity/Municipal Highway Agency
Historical SignificanceBridge is on the National Register of Historic Places
Scour Critical4 — Foundations need monitoring
Structure Number000000000000357

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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