Lehigh County Commissioners heard a report about Lehigh County’s bridges from Director of General Services Richard Molchany Feb. 9. Molchany’s introduction of the subject got the commissioners focused on upcoming budget issues.

“In Lehigh County we have some bridges that are functionally obsolete,” said Molchany. He was referring to the county’s covered bridges.

“If we were going to build a new bridge, we would never build a covered bridge. But, as a tourist attraction, our Lehigh County Covered Bridge Tour is wildly popular, according to Discover Lehigh Valley.”

“So, we keep and maintain these bridges. But because they are functionally obsolete, we we are limited on how much money the government will give us to maintain a functionally obsolete bridge,” he said. “We make grant requests [for those bridges].”

“The Geiger Bridge, located at the Trexler Nature Preserve on Old Packhouse Road is closed for construction. We received a $400,000 grant and we’re working on that bridge right now to bring that bridge up to what we consider functionally obsolete standards. It will be passable with a three-ton limit.”

Geiger Covered Bridge is in North Whitehall Township. It is a 112-foot-long bridge across Jordan Creek constructed in 1860. It was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980.

“Here is a recap of status of bridges owned by Lehigh County,” said Molchany. “This is something that we review in earnest every year as we develop our five-year capital plan.

“Last year at this time we were discussing placing about $19 million into a capital plan. Keep in mind, capital plans do not equal budgets.”

President Geoff Brace said, “Two years ago, some of my colleagues suggested, ‘let the municipalities take ownership of the bridges.’ It was a contentious subject which baffled me at the time because it was the county’s responsibility.

“Why would we try and pass this onto the municipalities? I will urge my colleagues with regard to discussion of bridges to avoid that reaction. These are our responsibilities.

“If we try to pass it off to the municipalities all we end up with is a delayed construction project and an unfixed bridge.”

Commissioner Dave Harrington noted that there has been an increase in extreme weather, such as flooding.

“You are reading about ‘should we toll bridges’ and ‘should we increase registration rates,’” said Molchany. “To get that $12 billion for roads and bridges we need to contribute our share, which is roughly 20 percent.

“ti is certainly a challenge because we have so many bridges and so many of them that are, unfortunately, old. They require significant upkeep.

“Have we seen an increase in the wear and tear on our bridges because of that?” asked Harrington.

“Absolutely,” said Molchany.