A small bridge in B.C.’s Southern Interior is closed to vehicle traffic, and will be for at three to six weeks.
On Wednesday, DriveBC issued a closure alert for Baxter Bridge, located east of Enderby, adding that a small portion of Trinity Valley Road is closed in both directions between Miska and Frederick roads.
The bridge closure also includes a detour via Highway 6 and Highway 97-97A.
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DriveBC says the bridge is open to pedestrians, cyclists and small emergency vehicles.
The Ministry of Transportation says one of the support trusses on the wooden bridge has failed, through normal use, compromising the bridge’s load-bearing capacity.
“The safety of the public is the ministry’s top priority,” the ministry said in an email. “Regular inspections are conducted on all bridges to ensure safety and that’s how this closure came about.”
The ministry said the failure was identified on Nov. 9 during an inspection, with the failure being confirmed by a ministry structural engineer the same day.
It added that staff are exploring options to reduce the repair time and have the bridge open to traffic sooner.