Temporary fix at Raymo Road quashed by council

Julie Druker | Jul 16, 2015

An emergency council meeting took place on July 9, at Oso Hall, members of Central Frontenac Council first considered a temporary fix for the Raymo Road bridge collapse that occurred on June 16.

Following the bridge’s partial collapse, township staff looked into installing a walking path along the west edge of the road to allow for the safe passage of pedestrian traffic. However, a further collapse at the site on June 18 put a halt to that first plan, with staff deciding that a temporary walking path would be unsafe.

The township has since posted signs closing the section of road to all foot and vehicular traffic, though it appears that some local residents are continuing to cross the affected area regardless of the signs.

As a solution to the problem, Public Works Manager Kyle Labbett made a number of presentations to council. The first concerned installing a temporary system of docks on the upstream side of the culverts across the waterway at the site. This was deemed to be the most cost-effective temporary fix and would allow for foot traffic until the bridge is permanently fixed. The plan was to build two 20-foot docks from both sides of the shoreline with an additional 60-foot middle section connecting the two.

With an estimated cost of $20,000 - $ 25,000 it did not take long for council to quash the proposed temporary fix, deeming it too expensive for such a short term. When Mayor Frances Smith asked the five affected residents at the meeting (who it appears are continuing to use the walkway despite the signs instructing them not to do so) for a straw vote on the matter, all five said no to it.

The report on a permanent solution, which was prepared by engineers Greer Galloway, addressed soil and water tests that were done at the site. Based on the report, Labbett recommended that council approve the purchase of two pieces of structural steel, (zz1220) elliptical galvanized pipes each with a wall thickness of 5mm from Armtec Limited Partner Corporation at a cost of just over $80,000. Council approved the motion.

By the time the site is engineered and the culverts installed, the project will cost $250,000 to $300,000 or more.

Council passed a motion deferring the planned rehabilitation of two bridges on Burke Settlement Road as well as the removal of one abandoned bridge on Crow Lake Road from the 2015 capital budget, deferring both to the 2016 capital budget. Those measures freed up $230,000, which will go towards the Raymo Road fix.

Labbett stated that the pipes could take three to five weeks to arrive and in the meantime the engineers will finalize their plans so that staff can prepare the tenders. Because the township will be putting out an invitation to tender, the turnaround time will be lessened, though Labbett added that the awarding of the contract could still take anywhere from a month to five weeks.

Labbett did say that in the meantime staff could start preparing the site for the new pipes so that when they arrive work can proceed without delay.

The five affected residents who attended the emergency meeting said that they are frustrated since they feel that township staff are continuing to excavate at the site, thereby making passage across it more and more difficult.

Labbett said he had no choice but to construct berms at both ends of the affected section of road because it appeared that ATVs were still crossing it in spite of the signs. “We have no choice, due to liability, to impede all traffic crossing there because it is not safe and that is why we built up the berms to prevent people and vehicles from crossing.”

While council is addressing the issue in due time, it looks as though the permanent fix will not get underway for at least another month’s time.