Structure 3383 · Somerset County, ME

Wire Bridge RD over Carrabasset River

Carries Wire Bridge RD over Carrabasset River, 0.7 Mi NE Of Old RTE 27.

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 FT198 FT OVERALL25 FT0ELEVATION · LENGTHS TO SCALE
Deck 5/9 · sets the ratingSuperstructure 6/9Substructure 5/9 · sets the rating

198 ft end to end: about 3 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 suspension bridge.

Built1886rebuilt 2009
Length198.2 ft60.4 m
Daily traffic74counted 2016
Last inspectedMay 2024every 24 months

Location

StateMaine
CountySomerset
Location0.7 Mi NE Of Old RTE 27
CarriesWire Bridge RD
CrossesCarrabasset River
Coordinates44.89075, -70.09269

Physical Characteristics

MaterialWood or Timber
DesignSuspension
Total Length198.2 ft (60.4 m)
Max Span192.9 ft (58.8 m)
Deck Width12.1 ft (3.7 m)
Deck Area223.5 sq m
Main Spans1
Year Built1886 (reconstructed 2009)

Traffic

Avg Daily Traffic74 (2016)
Truck Traffic5%
Lanes On Bridge1

Inspection & Ownership

Last InspectionMay 2024
Inspection FrequencyEvery 24 months
OwnerState Highway Agency
Historical SignificanceBridge is on the National Register of Historic Places
Scour Critical8 — Stable, low risk
Structure Number3383

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.

Nearby Bridges