Project Location: Town of Morristown in Lamoille County on VT Route 15A over the Lamoille River. The bridge is located approximately .27 miles southwest of the intersection of VT Route 15A and VT Route 15.

The Morristown Bridge 1 project will replace the existing temporary bridge, which is in satisfactory condition, but has a substandard width with poor horizontal and vertical alignment, with a new bridge on an improved alignment meeting all the current design standards. The existing bridge is a single span, temporary Mabey truss bridge that was installed in 2008. The temporary bridge is approximately 115-feet in length and has a deck and substructure that are in poor condition, with steel truss members that were not designed for permanent use.

The proposed design criteria for the bridge project included evaluating the roadway alignment, right of way impacts, hydraulics and historical and archaeological resources. Several alternatives were considered for this project including no action, deck replacement, superstructure replacement, and full bridge replacement both on and off alignment. Given the age and condition of the structure, it was determined that the project warranted a full bridge replacement on an improved horizontal and vertical alignment.

The new bridge will be a 3-span, curved girder superstructure with a substructure composed of concrete cantilevered abutments and two concrete piers supported on piles or spread footings. The bridge will have two, eleven-foot lanes with four-foot shoulders on each side, which meets Vermont State Design Standards. The new bridge will be approximately 223-feet in length. Since the roadway is being realigned and the new finish grade will be significantly higher, there will be some additional work on the VAST trail that crosses VT Route 15A at the bridge location to bring it up to grade. The bridge project will also be packaged together with a roadway project that will improve the nearby intersection of VT Route 15 and VT Route 15A. The intersection will be realigned to improve the sight distance and safety. In addition a new cattle pass will be installed underneath VT Route 15 for the farm at the corner of the intersection.

During construction, traffic will be maintained on the existing bridge structure while the new bridge is constructed adjacently along a new roadway alignment. The contractor must maintain one–lane of traffic at all times with the exception of agreed upon closure periods. It is anticipated that the bridge and roadway project will be constructed over the course of multiple years. The target construction schedule is set for mobilization by the end of the 2017 construction season with the project completion by the end of the 2019 construction season.