Willard Bridge Funding Secured

From the Capital-Journal:

No one who drives across the Willard Bridge questions the need for a replacement.

As tires hum along the iron surface, regulars hope there is no hint of rain or build-up in dew to make the crossing over the Kansas River more treacherous.

It is bad enough to know the bridge, which connects Rossville and Interstate 70, has structural problems similar to the Mississippi River bridge that collapsed nine years ago in Minn-eapolis.

The Willard Bridge has a structural safety rating of 23.7 on a scale of 100, which offers little comfort to motorists and once prompted one county commissioner, Bob Archer, to call for its closure.

Fortunately, the governing body of Shawnee County took an additional step. Funding was secured last week to demolish the existing bridge and build a new structure.

The appropriation, finalized through an agreement with the Kansas Department of Transportation for up to $8.5 million in interest-free loans, is a tribute to the tireless efforts of Shelly Buhler, the Shawnee County Commission chairwoman.

Her commutes force Buhler to regularly use the bridge and provided her a clear understanding of the issues faced by those living along that segment of the Shawnee-Wabaunsee County boundary.

Approval by voters to extend the half-cent, countywide sales tax beginning in 2017 will help to repay loans needed to pay for demolition of the existing bridge and construction of a new bridge. The commission approved $24.7 million for the project, which was identified as a transportation priority in 2009.

While the process took considerable time to piece together, funding eventually was discovered and ensures that a vital component to the infrastructure of Shawnee County will be improved.

Residents in the western portion of the county, and particularly Rossville, are obviously valued by a commission that faces a broad array of road and bridge issues, but few as pressing, or monumental, as the Willard Bridge.

The structure was built more than 60 years ago after the 1951 Kansas River flood wiped out a previous bridge. The bridge was then widened in 1983, though that was still more than 30 years ago.

Steps taken to secure funding for a new bridge are to be applauded, but only at the right time. If anything, the Willard Bridge taught us the importance of keeping both hands on
the wheel.