CHESHIRE, Mass. — The town has been awarded two grants to address the decaying condition of a bridge and a culvert on Lanesborough Road. 

 

The funding comes through the Municipal Small Bridge Program and the Community Culvert Program, both of which the town applied to last year. 

 

The state Department of Transportation will be reconstructing Good Life Bridge, as part of its Municipal Small Bridge Program, and repairing a deficient culvert on the same street over an unnamed stream as part of its Community Culvert Program.

 

The projects are being advanced by an engineering firm selected by MassDOT, which will develop a needs assessment and scope of the project, which will be reviewed and approved by the town and state before work begins. The firms selected for the project will invoice the state directly for all work conducted. 

 

According to the state website, Good Life Bridge was last inspected in January 2025, and rated as structurally deficient. Its deck and superstructure are in poor condition and the substructure is in fair condition. 

 

The steel stringer/girder bridge carries traffic along an east–west roadway and was built in 1916, then subsequently widened to the north shortly thereafter, a state Structures Inspection Field Report from January 2023, said. 

 

The report said that records indicated repairs were performed in the 1990’s when several beams were installed. 

 

The bridge currently has a weight restriction of 15 tons. There is an advance and at-bridge posting for eastbound traffic. While westbound traffic has an advance posting in an incorrect location, and no at-bridge posting.

 

The report indicates that many beams have severe section loss and can easily be moved by hand, including beams 1 through 7, 9, 11, and 12, which have large perforations and areas of 100 percent loss.

 

Several beams are shimmed in some areas, including 2, 4, 6, 8, and 10, and have gaps up to a ½ inch high between the top flange and deck.

 

Beams 13 through 17 have moderate to severe rusting and delamination. Beam 7 is disconnected from the deck, sagging, and the bottom flange is twisted out of plane. Beam 9, at the east end, and Beam 11 are twisted out of plane to the north.