Craig Bridge gates fixed, but electrical problem persists, ODOT says

Its safety gates repaired, the Craig Memorial Bridge remained closed to traffic indefinitely Thursday while a state contractor tried to ferret out an electrical gremlin that was the initial reason for its closing more than two weeks earlier.

Something is amiss within sets of electrical sensors that ensure the bridge operates properly when its drawspans are raised or lowered for Maumee River vessel traffic, the Ohio Department of Transportation explained.

“This goes back to the original problem that closed the bridge on July 9,” Kyle Ruedel, the ODOT project engineer, said in a prepared statement. “There are numerous sensors that must be examined to identify the impacted sensor, and we have checked roughly 25 percent of the sensors at this time.”

Troubleshooting by ODOT and contractor personnel began with the detection of communication errors after a ship passed through the bridge. The “fully closed” indication did not reach the control station, preventing the safety gates from rising to allow traffic — a status that cannot be overridden, ODOT said.

While it was closed to vehicles but with its drawspans not raised, a motorist blasted through both sets of the safety gates July 9, causing extensive damage that required replacement parts to be fabricated.

Although authorities surmised that the vehicle had to have sustained substantial damage, it and its driver have not been identified.

Repairs to the damaged gates were completed Monday. ODOT said Thursday there is “currently no estimate when the bridge will be returned to regular service.”

The Craig carried I-280 over the Maumee River before that function was taken over in 2007 by the Veterans’ Glass City Skyway next to it. ODOT extended State Rt. 65 to keep the 1950s-vintage structure as part of the state highway system for use by local traffic, including I-280 vehicles using it to link Summit Street with the freeway’s Front Street interchange.

An ODOT study of the bridge last year “found the bridge to be structurally in fair condition and agreed that major rehabilitation of mechanical and electrical components is necessary,” the department’s statement said. Design planning is slated to begin yet this year, with construction planned in 2027.

The Craig’s closing has diverted traffic to the nearby Martin Luther King, Jr. Bridge and resulted in unusually heavy traffic at the intersections beyond the latter bridge’s ends.