Old Santa Fe bridge is 'functionally obsolete'

Work is well under way to replace the Santa Fe Avenue bridge over the Tuolumne River near Hughson. Federal and state funds are paying for the bulk of the $14.3 million Stanislaus County project, which was deemed necessary after the old Santa Fe bridge built in 1947 was declared "functionally obsolete." Replacing a bridge that's considered narrow by today's standards, the new span will have two travel lanes, 8-foot-wide shoulders and a center lane for turning into driveways at both ends. In July, the Board of Supervisors approved an $11.4 million bridge replacement contract with Myers and Sons Construction of Sacramento. The county will spend almost $1.3 million in local matching funds for the work. The river crossing remains open during construction.

This story was originally published December 3, 2017 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Old Santa Fe bridge is 'functionally obsolete'."