MONSON – While detours and shutdowns in Monson may be an inconvenience for some, town employees say it will all be worth it in the end.

On Aug. 3, the prolonged shutdown of the Route 32 bridge on the Monson/Palmer line began as the state works to remove the current bridge and replace it with a new one. For the past year and a half, Ben Murphy, Monson highway surveyor, said there has been a stoplight on this route causing one lane stop and go traffic.

He explained that the state has had this on their docket to fix for about one year now. Since the project requires a detour route over Fenton Road, Murphy said the state came and told them that the shutdown would last one week.

After agreeing to the week’s shutdown, the town was informed that there was a change in the timeline, as the project is more in depth then they thought, said Murphy. Now, the shutdown is expected to last between 11 and 12 weeks, with an end date of Oct. 19. However, he said they are hopeful that it will be completed sooner.

Murphy explained the detour route. “If you’re headed northbound, you go down [Rt.] 32 to Fenton Road – over Fenton to Rt. 20 and go back into Palmer. If you’re headed southbound through Palmer, you’re going to have to come all the way down Rt. 20 over into Brimfield – come up over Monson Road – down Brimfield Road.”

He said that Upper Palmer Road and State Avenue will be receiving three times the use it is currently getting. Murphy expressed that this will be an issue, however, they are at the point where not much else can be done.

While the detours may take time for people to get used to, Murphy said they are more worried about the trucks.

“We want the people to know [that] we understand Fenton Road is narrow. If they could stay off that except for the one-way traffic that would be appreciated,” shared Murphy.

As the bridge is on a state road, the project is of no cost to the town. Murphy added that the state will be taking care of the detours as well. “I think the only initial cost is that we’re going to have much more wear on our roads,” he said. “Fenton Road will see more traffic than it would in the next 10 years from this three-month shutdown.”

Jennifer Wolowicz, town administrator, noted that they have been in contact with the state for nearly seven months regarding this project. Murphy echoed her point and said that the project was supposed to start in March but has been pushed down the line.

“It’s not just the bridge and Fenton. This is going to affect everything [on] this whole end of town because people will be using the shortcuts,” said Murphy.

He encourages residents to watch their speeds on Brimfield Road and Monson Road.

Wolowicz said that although this might be an inconvenience for a little bit of time, it will all be worth it in the end.

Maple Street Bridge

On July 13, the town of Monson received a letter from the Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) that they have been awarded $100,000 for the design phase of the Maple Street Bridge.

Monson was a recipient of the Municipal Small Bridge Program Awards that is funded by MassDOT. The program allows for communities to apply for funding for bridge design.

Murphy explained that in 2016, they received a $500,000 grant for the bridge on Silver Street. He noted that they also had to design the bridge which cost the town $250,000, bringing the total project cost to $750,000.

“Now what is exciting to us is that with this new Maple Street, they informed us that the state is actually going to pay for the design too,” said Murphy. He predicts that this will not cost as much as Silver Street, as it’s not as involved. However, the town has not received any price quotes yet. Wolowicz said that MassDOT has on boarded seven small bridge designers that the state did procurement with. “Every community that received a grant will be assigned one of the firms,” she shared.

She went on to say that Monson will be receiving up to $100,000 for the design and the money will not go directly to the town but directly to the design firm.

In the design phase, Murphy said this includes what will be taken out, processed and put back in. “Environmental – we do have a water and sewer main under there that’s going to have to be replaced. All of that is going to be designed for them [the firm] to follow what the actual process is going to be. What exists now, what’s going to exist after,” explained Murphy.

At press time, Murphy said it’s hard to know if additional funding will be required. Nonetheless, he said as the process goes on, they will know more about cost and a timeline for completion.

Murphy told Reminder Publishing that the bridge was shut down last November. This decision was made by the town of Monson, as the bridge was deemed “bad” through the bridge report.

In 2019, a bridge report determined that it was failing, shared Murphy. However, the deterioration and concaving to one edge of the bridge ultimately led to its shut down in November 2021.

“On a small bridge program, it has to be a 20-foot span or under,” Murphy explained. Therefore, if it’s over 20 feet, the bridge wouldn’t qualify to receive grant funding.

“I’m very excited. I did not think this was going to happen,” Murphy continued. He recognized Wolowicz for pushing him to apply for the grant.

“It’s a great opportunity for the town to get the design paid for through the state grant,” said Wolowicz.

She added that the grant application wasn’t a standard “check the box,” but required historical data on previous findings and reviews on who uses the road, corridors studies and so on.

With a railroad crossing and low underpass over the bridge, Murphy believes that this might have assisted in receiving the grant.

Wolowicz explained, “There’s a lot of grant opportunities that the state has, and as a community, we are certainly dependent on those funds.” The Highway Department receives Chapter 90 money for all the paving, sidewalks and bridges in town. “There’s a formula for how your community gets a certain amount of money,” she added. The formula is based on road miles, population and more.

With 160 miles of road, Monson is the third largest town (in regard to road miles), following behind Plymouth and Belchertown. Murphy noted that this does not include cities such as Springfield, Boston and Worcester. He said this helps the town when applying for and receiving grants.

This year, Monson received a total of $464,000 for Chapter 90 funding.