The Allenton bridge permanently closed on Dec. 19. causing detours and frustration for travel in Eureka.
Residents have been notified that the bridge will not be reopening either. The City of Eureka has discussed they have designed a new bridge. Unfortunately, the city will not be putting the new bridge in place due to insufficient funds.
People that live in the Allenton area as well as Legends residents are frustrated. Ella Lindsay, 11, expresses her troubles due to the closure.
“It affects my route if I travel because I can’t get on the highway as fast and it takes me longer to get to certain places in that area. It takes much longer to get on the highway, which is really annoying because it slows me down and I have to end up leaving my house earlier,” Lindsay said.
The Allenton bridge is located off of I-44 and Allenton Road. Due to where the bridge is located in Eureka, it causes other problems for Lindsay. Travels to nearby towns take longer. By not allowing people to travel through the bridge, it takes longer for people to get to places nearby Eureka.
Residents that live in the Legends Subdivision can use Legends Parkway instead of West Main Street. By having people spread out their route of travel, the City of Eureka is hoping that the traffic flow will decrease.
“My boyfriend lives in Pacific so it takes me an extra 10 minutes to go the opposite way, just to turn back and go on the highway. Which is really annoying,” Lindsay said.
One of the other main concerns is traffic and affecting people’s time of arrival. Austin Scott, 11, has had issues due to the bridge closing. Scott has concerns about the quality of the roads especially now that more people are using West Main. Having poor conditions on the road can cause possible damage to cars.
“The quality of the other roads were not very good to begin with, but I think with the added traffic the road conditions will begin to deteriorate even more. I’m not too sure what they will be putting there, I am hopeful that at some point they will raise enough money to fix it and reopen it,” Scott said.
Maclyn Brickman, 12, mentioned that the bridge closing has been a huge inconvenience. The Allenton Bridge permanently closing will result in longer commute times. The Allenton bridge is located at the very end of West Main therefore it could cause people to have to turn around.
“It has affected my time of travel because anytime I am trying to go somewhere I have to remember that it is closed so I have to leave earlier because it takes longer to get there. A lot of times I forget it’s closed so if I’m in a rush it causes me to be late,” Brickman said.
