Press Release

Burtonsville Road Spur Bridge Dedicated During Reopening

CHARLESTON— County officials dedicated the new Burtonsville Road Spur Bridge to former Department of Public Works Commissioner Paul Clayburn at a ribbon cutting ceremony today marking the reopening of the structure. “Paul dedicated three decades of service to Montgomery County and was passionate about improving the safety of our roads and bridges,” Montgomery County Executive Matthew L. Ossenfort said. “Repairing the Burtonsville Road Spur Bridge was one of Paul’s longstanding goals and now that it’s finally completed we felt it was important that his work towards completing this be remembered.”

The Burtonsville Bridge runs over the spur of the Schoharie Creek into Burtonsville.

The bridge was heavily damaged due to flooding and in need of complete replacement. This unique crossing of the Schoharie Creek provides an overflow channel that enables floodwaters to pass below the roadway during extreme storm events such as Hurricane Irene in 2011.

Replacement costs were $3.1 million. The project was 80 percent funded by the federal government and 20 percent by New York state.

The existing bridge, constructed in 1939 was a two span 180 foot long steel thru-girder structure. Over time, the bridge had deteriorated and was posted for a 10 ton maximum load limit when the old structure was finally removed earlier this year.

It is the only bridge over the Schoharie Creek from the Gilboa Dam to the Mohawk River that has an overflow channel. This overflow channel allows the crossing to remain open or to close temporarily during high water events providing a more reliable crossing that serves three counties directly adjacent to the structure--- those counties are Montgomery, Schoharie and Schenectady.

“Replacing the deteriorating infrastructure and improving the safety in our county has been one of my top priorities,” Ossenfort said. “I’m pleased to see the completion of this bridge and I’m thankful that Paul made this project such a priority.”