Craig Memorial Bridge remains in upright position

BOWLING GREEN, Ohio (July 25, 2024) - The Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) is continuing to perform troubleshooting and testing on the Craig Memorial Bridge which carries State Route 65 over the Maumee River in Toledo.

The bridge remains closed to vehicular traffic while ODOT project personnel and their contracting partners, US Utilities, work to identify the cause of electrical communication errors which occur when the bridge is lowered after a cargo vessel has passed through.

"This goes back to the original problem that closed the bridge on July 9," said project engineer Kyle Ruedel. "There are numerous sensors that must be examined to identify the impacted sensor, and we have checked roughly 25% of the sensors at this time," he said.

Three sets of sensors exist; in the operations control tower; at the bridge level; and below deck in the cavity of the structure. The functionality of the bridge relies on each of the sensors successfully communicating between one another for it to raise and lower properly.

During the lowering process, which allows the bridge to open to vehicular traffic, the "fully closed" indicator does not reach the operations control tower, prohibiting the gates on the bridge from lifting to allow vehicle traffic. The process cannot be manually overridden.

The bridge was last lowered on July 9 after a cargo vessel passed under the bridge. It was closed to vehicle traffic that day after the electrical communication malfunction with the closing sensors was discovered.

On July 9 while the bridge was closed for repairs, a reckless driver crashed through the safety gates on both sides of the bridge, causing extensive damage. Repairs to the damaged gates were completed on Monday, July 22, which allowed US Utilities to resume troubleshooting of the original electrical communication issue.

There is currently no estimate when the bridge will be returned to regular service.

ODOT is mandated by federal regulation to maintain the navigable waterway for vessels and ships on-demand as needed.

In fall 2023, a study was performed to assess the condition and future needs of the Craig Memorial Bridge. The study found the bridge to be structurally in fair condition and agreed that major rehabilitation of mechanical and electrical components is necessary. Design plans will begin later this year with construction targeted for 2027.