By Rupert Howell

Strict enforcement of posted bridge weight limits on Highway 6 West between Batesville and Clarksdale has caused concern and with harvest season fast approaching, farmers trying to get their products to market are anxious.

Although the weight limits have been posted for several years, strict enforcement, which began the Tuesday after Labor Day, has caused murmuring not only about getting goods to market and trucking businesses rerouting away from the area, but also has spawned the question, “How did our bridges get in such bad shape?”

“As quickly as possible, we are replacing bridges throughout the district,” MDOT District Engineer Mitch Turner said.

But Turner will quickly admit the “as possible,” has everything to do with available funds for replacing bridges.

He notes that in District Two, which is one of six districts statewide and includes 17 counties, “… almost one-half of all structures (that) are functionally obsolete bridges (and) that need to be replaced in the state.”

Turner noted that there are 13 bridges between Batesville and Clarksdale on that list and 12 between Charleston and Webb on Highway 32 also in District Two.

“That puts us behind the eight-ball when it comes to keeping commerce moving…” Turner noted, asking the question, “do you keep commerce moving or save it for regular traffic?” 

Thursday morning, automobile traffic was heavy, but big trucks were scarce at the Tallahatchie River Bridge west of Batesville on Highway 6.

Willie Huff is director of MDOT law enforcement and backed up Turner’s statement, saying, “It is difficult to balance the concern for public safety with the transportation needs of agriculture, timber or other commodity transporters.”

Giving an example he said, “Recently one vehicle weighed 46,000 pounds over the posted limit and many weighed in excess of 28,000 pounds over the posted limit of some of these bridges.” 

Huff added, “Although the structures are not in imminent danger of collapse, continued violation of the posted limits will result in even lower postings or the eventual closure of the structures. If the bridge is closed or the weight is reduced, response by emergency personnel could be affected.” 

Asked why the bridge postings were strictly enforced beginning September 2, Huff responded, “Bridge limits are enforced state wide with the enforcement in your area being more warnings than citations.” He later noted, “Bridge postings are enforced statewide but we have provided a longer warning period in this area.” 

Huff further explained, “The continued extreme weight violations and disregard of the warnings caused public safety concerns. We do not have the luxury of crossing our fingers and hoping nothing tragic happens to a school bus load of children or a family traveling to the grocery store.”

Meanwhile local farmer John Thomas is worried about getting his crops from the field to a buyer. Previously he could get a harvest permit for 84,000 pounds, he explained. With the lowered weight limits, he is restricted to 48,000 pounds and the trucks he hires to haul his grains weigh 30-32,000 pounds empty.

Where hauling a load to Friars Point (a common shipping destination) usually involved 1,000 bushels for approximately $350, that same trucker could now only haul 300 bushels and would want the same amount, raising his hauling cost from 35 cents a bushel to $1.15, according to Thomas. 

The good news is, there’s a lot of grain to haul. The bad news—prices have dropped.

Thomas has communicated with State Representatives Nolan Mettetal and Lataisha Jackson as well as U.S. Representative Bennie Thompson’s office. All said they are on board with finding a resolution.

A meeting scheduled after press time Thursday by the Delta Council with Huff and other MDOT officials may offer some direction to deal with the situation. That organization’s executive director is Chip Morgan and he stated Wednesday that there have been 22 meetings between Delta Council representatives and the weight enforcement division of MDOT in recent years.

Delta Council is an area economic development organization representing the 18 Delta and part-Delta counties of Northwest Mississippi. The council uses their efforts to solve common problems and promote the development of the economy in the area.

Morgan explained that new weight limits were not posted last week, but have been there for a while, and assured that Delta Council had been working toward a solution with the powers that be prior to strict enforcement that began September 2. He also explained that federal funds were used to build or help fund many of the bridges and highways in question and noted if you accept federal funds, you must abide by federal rules (including weight limits) if you want to get more.

Morgan hinted that a viable solution may be found but both he and District Engineer Turner indicate that even if funding is available, it won’t happen quickly.

Currently bridges on Highway 6 are scheduled to be replaced between 2015-2019.

“We need to find a way to expedite that,” said Turner, who assured that Northern Highway District Commissioner Mike Tagert is, “Knee deep trying to find means of accommodating traffic.”

Meanwhile Delta Council’s Morgan looks at the situation as an emergency and hopes those in high positions can move forward together and begin working the solution much sooner than the average government project.