"Joe,
I am relatively new to your site but must say I enjoy the realism of your reporting. I was wondering if you have ever covered the drawbridge(s) and their inopportune openings(6:00 PM Friday?), but more importantly the malfunctions that always seem to occur. The best case scenario is you are only stuck for 30 minutes. As was the case of last thursday the bridge gates get stuck down. After 40 minutes of maneuvering to get out of the mess the thing was still stuck. The most concerning part of this ordeal was the ambulance that was coming through the traffic only to get stuck at the bridge. It took at least 10 minutes to get turned around and potentially could have been the difference between life and death. Now I understand things go wrong and break. However, I have seen 3 different instances recently with this bridge either being stuck in the air or with the arms being stuck down. Who are the morons in charge of this bridge and why can't they fix it correctly?
Keep up the good work."
Thanks to the Bridge not being up 99.9% of the times Comegys, you have to be wrong. I mean, if Gary Comegys and Chief see say that this is just about impossible, you must be wrong, right? NOT! ANOTHER reason to vote for Jim Ireton. He doesn't have to LIE to the Public to get a project sold and then come back later and make excuses. Thanks for sharing.
DelMarVa's Premier Source for News, Opinion, Analysis, and Human Interest Contact Publisher Joe Albero at alberobutzo@wmconnect.com or 410-430-5349
The bridge has not been "stuck up". They have been doing work on it at night. That is why two lanes have been shut down every night also.
ReplyDeleteJoe, did my brother get hold of you concerning this last week? He sat at the bridge for roughly 15 mins, bridge went up, then down, then the gates got stuck in the down position... Heres the kicker, there was a bad accident near Dayton's restaurant needing an extra ambulance. Guess what was trying to cross, yep you got it. He said it was there in the traffic trying to get through then was trying to back up through the traffic to get to an alternate route. He called me wanting your cell #.
ReplyDeleteanon 8:48 If the bridge isn't stuck then why so many complaints about the bridge up? The compliants aren't about the lanes...
ReplyDeleteIt's ridiculous for a city of this size to have a drawbridge in the center of town. Need to shut down the north prong and make it a park with restaurants and shops, with ample parking. That would revitalize the downtown area as well. But that would take vision. The whole west side of town is hostage to the bridge.
ReplyDeleteComegys was the senior engineer on the West Main St. bridge job for SHA.
ReplyDelete9:30 Figures! Anything he touches turns to s***
ReplyDelete9:05, they are working on the bridge from underneath. The lane closures are just part of it. They have been working on it for weeks if not a few months. Thats why equipment is sitting in the parking lot behind the bridge control tower.
ReplyDeleteThe bridge did indeed get backed up for 30 to 40 minutes last Thursday night. I live on the west side of it and it took 30 minutes to get forward two stoplights on the highway.
ReplyDeleteComegys also was the person who declared the Main Street Bridge ready to be opened after it was returned from rebuilding in Baltimore. Except that it wasn't ready to be opened. Safety equipment wasn't installed that would prevent the spans from falling if the motors failed, and cameras in the Rt 50 tower (where the bridge operator was for both bridges)didn't let the operator see if the bridge was clear of car and foot traffic.
ReplyDeleteOpening the bridge early sure made Barrie happy, though. And that's why he did it, instead of protecting the public.
"9:30 Figures! Anything he touches turns to s***"
ReplyDeleteAnd not because he's unlucky, like most of the rest of us. He just doesn't give a s*** if there isn't something in it for him.