Waite & Mather Street Bridge Replacement Project

The Town of Hamden is starting the process of replacing the bridges at Waite Street and Mather Street which cross over Lake Whitney. Both bridges were constructed in 1935. Regular inspections of the bridges have rated them poor and in need of replacement. The poor rating is because the concrete is deteriorating due to salt and age.

Work to Be Done

The project involves the replacement of the Waite Street and Mather Street bridges over Lake Whitney, improving vehicle, pedestrian, and bicycle safety by:

Installing continuous sidewalks across Lake Whitney connecting Dixwell Avenue (Route 10) and the Farmington Canal Greenway multi-purpose trail with the Spring Glen and Whitneyville neighborhoods and Whitney Avenue (Route 707)
Installing guard rail across the causeways to prevent errant vehicles from entering Lake Whitney
Realigning the intersection of Waite Street with Mather Street

Budget

The project has an estimated construction cost of $4 million.

Waite Street Bridge

The Waite Street bridge has a structural rating of 3 (serious condition), due to corrosion of the girders and deterioration and cracking of the abutments supporting the girders. Connecticut Department of Transportation has warned the town that the bridge may need to be closed to traffic if its condition deteriorates further.

The bridge is currently on a 12 month inspection schedule, with both surface and underwater inspections required each year. The bridge is currently posted with a weight limit of 11 tons for single unit trucks and 17 tons for semi-trailer trucks.

Mather Street Bridge

The Mather Street bridge has a structural rating of 4 (poor condition), due to undermining and deterioration of its abutments.

History

A previous project to replace the Waite Street bridge was canceled in 2008, due to community opposition to the design, including that the proposed bridge was too wide and that sidewalks were only provided on the bridge and not on the rest of the causeway over the lake, requiring pedestrians to walk in the road.

The current project would replace the bridges without widening the roadway, and would provide continuous sidewalks and other safety improvements such as realigning the intersection of Mather and Waite streets and installing guard rail across the causeways as recommended in South Central Regional Council of Governments' 2012 Hamden East-West Transportation Study, as well as in a 2000 study by the South Central Connecticut Regional Water Authority.

Project Timetable

The Town currently anticipates the replacements to be conducted starting in 2020 after completion of the Skiff Street Bridge. We anticipate this amount of time will be needed to design and permit the project. The Town will be pursuing a grant to replace the bridges and to do any necessary site work on the roadways.

Prior to engaging an engineering firm to conduct the design to replace the bridge, the Town of Hamden is conducting a survey of local residents and users of the bridges for input. Your opinion will be used by the Town to create guidelines for the engineering firm to design the bridges. We have added space for feedback where you can add comments and suggestions. We encourage you to fill these suggestion boxes out so we can properly address any concerns you may have.

Public Outreach & Opinion Survey

No personal or identifying information will be requested, only very basic demographic information. Please participate in the survey via Survey Monkey.

We greatly appreciate your time in providing your opinion about the replacement of the bridges over Lake Whitney at Waite Street and Mather Street. The Town is planning a public informational meeting in the near future and we hope to have answers to some of your suggestions and questions.

Photos

See pictures of these two bridges in the Photo Gallery.