|
Key Facts |
Bridge Name | Type | Road | Location | City | Crossing |
| Shaffer Road Bridge | Truss | Shaffer Road | Ashtabula County, OH | Rural | Grand River |
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Technical Facts |
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Construction Date |
Rehabilitation Date | Structure Length | Roadway Width | Builder |
| 1913 | 2001 | 168 Feet | 16.1 Feet | Massillon Bridge and Structural Company of Massillon, Ohio |
You might notice that a lot of bridges in this area were built in 1913, an example that I visited being the Callender Road Bridge. This is likely due to a really bad flood that occurred in this area in 1913 and washed away some of the bridges.
This bridge was built by the Massillon Bridge and Structural Company. The bridge is an eight panel Pratt through truss bridge with riveted connections. Original railings do not remain on the bridge and modern railings are present on the structure. The portal bracing is a lattice structure, and v-lacing is present on the verticals, sway bracing, and under the top chord / endposts. The bridge is supported by concrete abutments.
I am glad to see that this bridge has been preserved. Ashtabula County now needs to continue, and preserve more of its truss bridges, instead of demolishing them like they are currently planning. The fact that this bridge was restored proves that they can do it to the other bridges. This bridge has a sufficiency rating on www.nationalbridges.com of 70%, which is very high, and proves that a metal truss bridge can, if restored, serve the needs of modern rural traffic.
