Charles Berry Lift Bridge Annual Inspection

Barr & Prevost, A JMT Division, conducted a three-year annual inspection of the Charles Berry Memorial Bridge, including an in-depth physical inspection in the first year and routine inspections in each of the subsequent years. The 1,053-foot-long, 12-span lift bridge includes a 333-foot-long bascule span and carries four lanes of traffic over the Black River Landing, Transportation Center, and CSX railroad tracks in the harbor area of Lorain, OH.

The river span of the Charles Berry Memorial Bridge is a twin leaf bascule consisting of open steel grid deck and sidewalks with steel post and panel railing, carried by steel stringers and floor beams on counterbalanced, cantilevered deck trusses. The approach spans are composed of concrete-filled steel grid decks and sidewalks with steel post and panel railing carried by steel stringers and floor beams with three steel girders. The substructure units consist of steel bents, reinforced concrete wall piers, and abutments.

Our final report consisted of a narrative with photographs that described those items for which conditions changed since the previous inspection and those items for which additional information was obtained to better illustrate the condition. Some previously-reported conditions were included in this report to emphasize the severity of their nature. A summary of recommendations for repair and maintenance was provided, as well as a location map, bridge plan and elevation, bridge typical sections through the truss and girder spans, a completed BR-86 form for the bridge, and the measurements taken at the expansion joints and rocker bearings.