Gloucester and Cape Ann commuter rail riders will be experiencing up to half-hour delays on weekends starting Feb. 25 due to construction on a failing drawbridge on the Newburyport/Rockport line — but the bridge pegged for repair isn't the one local commuters might expect.
The Annisquam drawbridge still has a speed limit of 10 miles per hour for trains crossing it, but the repairs are being done on the Saugus drawbridge.
According to MBTA spokesman Joe Pesaturo, the repairs on the Saugus drawbridge are preliminary ones that are needed before a more comprehensive repair project is carried out on that bridge as well.
"The work on the Saugus draw will be limited to work to secure the pier foundations only," Pesaturo said in an email to the Times. "Work will continue with the design for the permanent rehabilitation of the Saugus Draw. That work will happen after the work on the Gloucester bridge begins,"
The Saugus repairs are expected to cost approximately $2 million, and will slow all weekend trains until April 15.
The issues with the Saugus bridge and the Annisquam bridge are notably similar. According to a press release from November, the Saugus bridge has structural defects noticed during a routine inspection in November — just like inspectors found at the Annisquam River bridge in January.
Trains crossing the Saugus bridge were using one track, and were limited to going 30 mph over the bridge.
Trains crossing the Annisquam bridge are limited to 10 mph, and the trains briefly had to share one track — though both tracks that cross the span are back in use now.
Repairs to the Annisquam drawbridge are estimated to cost $42 million and take 17 months of work to build. Right now, plans on how to replace the bridge are 30 percent complete, with full plans expected in September.
The project will go to bid after the plans are finished, and construction could begin as early as Spring 2013.
In the meantime, inspections of the bridge are carried out every three months, MBTA officials have said, with smaller checks done by the engineers working on the new plans.
As to the Saugus work, Massachusetts Bay Commuter Rail noted that "the necessary repairs are scheduled on weekends to minimize impacts on customers."
Bus shuttle service will be in place between Lynn, Chelsea, and North stations on all inbound and outbound trains during work periods, the Massachusetts Bay Commuter Rail statement indicated.
Stephanie Bergman can be reached at 978-283-7000, x3451 or at sbergman@gloucestertimes.com.
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