Back in late January, Clay County Highway Superintendent Tom Roemmich Jr., along with the Clay County Board of Supervisors, announced that the timber overpass structure, located over the Burlington Northern/Santa Fe (BNSF) railroad tracks on Road W, just west of Sutton, was about to go under construction to replace the old wooden “overpass” that had been closed to traffic since early 2016.
According to Roemmich, “The structure had been closed since 2016, when the condition of the structure, including deterioration of the deck, caused the Clay County officials to close the viaduct to protect the public from accidents. The structure is owned by BNSF Railroad, and with an interlocal agreement with Clay County, BNSF maintained and repaired the structure, and Clay County was responsible for the yearly inspection” Fast forward to 2017, when initial negotiations began with BNSF to replace the structure. It was said that BNSF had agreed to fund the county $1.6 million toward the project, as the initial cost of the project in 2017 was estimated at $1.7 million.
In January, Roemmich shared that one stipulation made by BNSF was that the county was required to permanently close one railroad crossing within the county. County officials then decided that the crossing on Road G, west of Harvard, which was a dead end crossing into a wildlife area, was the only crossing that could be closed and would not hinder any traffic or access to property.
THE COVID-19 FACTOR The project then took a backseat for a while during the COVID-19 time frame in 2020, along with working through four different people with BNSF on the project. Roemmich, in January, then shared “In 2021 the project took back off, and work began with Jeremy Wegner and Kara Brockamp with BNSF, when the project proceeded forward.
“With inflation and the rising costs throughout and after COVID, the county knew the costs were going to increase. It took a considerable amount of time to design and approve the project, as it had to be approved by our engineers and by BNSF engineers,” adding, “There were a lot of steps to get the project to the final stages. In early 2023 a cost estimate was completed and the estimated cost had risen to a little over $3 million, including engineer and inspection costs.
“We (the county) knew that this would be a tremendous strain on our budget to complete a project of this magnitude, but in September 2023, the county put the project out for bids to see exactly what the price of the project may be.”
According to Roemmich, at the time, the low bid came from Midwest Infrastructures of Lincoln, who came in with a bid of $2,356,257. The cost to the county to complete the project would have been $756,255 versus the initial $100,000 in 2017.
Roemmich noted that the county went back to BNSF with the bid numbers and concerns about completing the project.
After more negotiations, BNSF agreed to fund an additional $750,000 toward the project, bringing the total estimated cost to the county at around $300,000, including engineering and inspection costs to complete the project.
“We were really happy with the negotiations and the time and effort by Jeremy and Kara with BNSF and Jeff Palik with Olsson & Associates, which is completing the engineering and inspection services for the project.”
Roemmich noted in early 2024 that BNSF was great to work with and without their efforts, this project would not have been feasible for the county to complete.
THE STRUCTURE: THE OLDVS.THE NEW The old current structure was a four-span, 121-foot long, by 20-foot wide timber structure built in 1935. The new structure is a three-span, 218-foot, by 31-foot wide concrete structure, which raised the deck of the overpass up nearly seven feet to accommodate clearance for train traffic going under the new structure.
The county purchased additional right-of-way property on the east and west sides of Road W to allow for utility relocation.
Roemmich noted early this year that when the project is complete, the structure will be owned, maintained, and inspected by Clay County. The new bridge will be essential to traffic in and around Sutton.
There is a lot of traffic that uses Road W to the CPI elevator, and fertilizer plant, as well as the DLD Ball Complex, which will help alleviate the times in Sutton when stopped trains block each crossing in town, making it difficult for first responders, including fire, ambulance, and law enforcement vehicles to have a way to leave and enter town in the event of an emergency.
SCHEDULED OPENING ANTICIPATED FOR OCT.15 This past week, Roemmich said he anticipates that the overpass structure and all of Road W is expected to be reopened to normal traffic Tuesday, Oct. 15.
The overpass project is nearing completion. The guardrail is scheduled to be installed next Wednesday (Oct. 2), Van Kirks have some dirt work to finish up, seeding needs to be done, and signage placed alongside the road and bridge. After those tasks are complete, gravel surfacing will be placed on the road before being opened.
