The Hammond River covered bridge at French Village will be torn down immediately to be replaced by a one lane modular bridge. That announcement has been made by provincial Transportation Minister Bill Fraser who says a one lane modular bridge is expected to be open for traffic by January.
An excavator crashed through the covered bridge in October of last year. It has been closed ever since. Repairs were underway when significant wood rot was discovered that threatened the structural integrity of the bridge.
The new modular bridge will cost anywhere from $1.7 to $2.5 million.
Something like half a million dollars had been spent on the covered bridge by the time the structural damage was discovered. Fraser maintains that money will not be wasted because much of the work would have to be done anyway for the new bridge.
