Carroll Cropper Bridge In-Depth Inspection Starts March 6

The inspection will last into April and will require extended traffic lane closures.

(Petersburg, Ky.) – Rigorous testing of metal welds will start next week on the Interstate 275 Carroll Cropper Bridge.

The Kentucky Transportation Cabinet announced today that the federally-mandated inspection will require single-lane closures on the four-lane bridge from Monday, March 6 through April 14.

The eastbound side of the bridge will be inspected first, followed by the westbound side. Lane closures will be contained to the far-right lane as the inspection advances.

Digital message signs will be place along I-275 notifying motorists of the work in advance of the closures.

The Carroll Cropper Bridge undergoes a routine inspection every two years, with the most recent being in July 2022. While that inspection report contained no critical findings for the bridge built in 1977, the upcoming inspection is more specialized.

It will involve removing paint, testing hundreds of welds and replacing primer.

“This in-depth inspection will determine whether very specific repairs will be needed. The public can be assured that our bridges will be kept safe,” said KYTC Secretary Jim Gray.

The Carroll Cropper is one of two spans in the Department of Highways District 6 region that will undergo this type of inspection. It contains “T-1” steel – a grade of high-strength, quenched and treated steel known for being highly amenable to welding and machining. However, in May 2021, a fracture was discovered in a weld – referred to as a “butt weld” – in a T-1 steel component of the Interstate 40 Hernando de Soto Bridge between Memphis, Tennessee, and West Memphis, Arkansas.

As a result, the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) in December 2021 issued a memorandum to states to identify, inspect and test specific T-1 steel bridges to verify the soundness of all butt welds with the use of non-destructive testing. FHWA asked that all the projects be completed by March 31, 2024.