One Lane Bridge at Centre of Controversy

News about closure and weight restrictions on the Howard Bridge over the Wallace River on Fountain Road has been a comedy of errors.

Public Works closed the bridge last week, without public warning. Deck repairs were completed and the bridge re-opened, again without notice.

Meanwhile, the department published an announcement, yesterday, that the bridge was closed to all traffic over one tonne.

That caught the attention of the MLA for Cumberland South who asked for details from his cabinet colleague.

It turns out the weight restriction was wrong. The department spokeswoman said the one tonne was a typo that should have read 15 tonnes. After being contacted by Six Rivers News, she said the error was corrected on the 511 hot line for road information.

However, Tory Rushton said, “Government has to do better than that.” In an interview on Six Rivers Radio’s Morning Talk, Rushton said social media is not the vehicle for such information.

He noted that many rural residents have poor internet service and cannot depend on social media for bridge closures or other sensitive community information.

Rushton said, “Facebook doesn’t cut it anymore,” and he noted Cumberland has three community radio stations that are committed to keeping residents informed but they cannot help if government departments withhold the information.

He said you cannot expect people to go looking for information—like the province’s 511 road service—for everyday service expectations.

He committed to raising the concern again in an effort to provide more effective communications with the public.

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