By Allison Perrine
RUMSON – Elected officials are asking members of the U.S. Coast Guard to reconsider the overall vertical clearance of the proposed new Oceanic Bridge connecting Rumson Borough and Middletown Township.
In a March 31 meeting, organized by U.S. Rep. Chris Smith and Monmouth County Commissioner Director Thomas A. Arnone, Middletown and Rumson mayors Tony Perry and Joseph K. Hemphill met with Coast Guard representatives to share their concerns about the proposed height of the new Oceanic Bridge (S-31) over the Navesink River. The current movable bridge sits 22 feet above the water at mean high tide. Under the recommended plan, the new, fixed bridge would sit 65 feet above water at mean high tide.
“We know it’s in desperate need of replacement and the county has done a very good job of keeping it operable. But just like all things, it comes time to replace them at some point,” said Perry. “It’s a historic district on one side; it’s a commercial district on the other. How can we best suit everybody’s needs?”
The existing bridge, a movable double leaf bascule superstructure, was built in 1939. According to the county, its overall length is 2,717 feet and its bridge cartway width is 32 feet. Studies have found the bridge to be “structurally deficient,” “functionally obsolete” and “nearing the end of its service life.” The substructure, for example, is in “poor condition” with wide cracking, deep spalls, exposed and heavily rusted steel and deterioration.
The county has been working on the project for at least five years. Officials have evaluated 26 total alternatives to date, including options of not rebuilding the bridge, rehabilitating it, completing a modified rehabilitation and constructing in a new location.
The plan is now to build a new, $145 million fixed-span bridge deemed option “Alternative No. 7A – Modified.” It would remove all bridge openings, provide wider sidewalks on both sides, provide shoulders for cyclists, eliminate annual operation costs of the movable span, provide a lower life cycle cost, maintain public access and more, according to the county. It will be constructed alongside the existing bridge to allow public use for a majority of the construction period.
“A fixed-span is the right way to go when it comes to replacing the oceanic bridge,” said Perry. “We can’t go back to the days of what we currently have and spend all this money on a replacement and not understand that it is time to replace it with a fixed-span. But then that calls into question, how high?”
The 65-foot vertical clearance suggestion comes from the Coast Guard. In March 2019, the Coast Guard issued a letter to the New Jersey Transit Planning Authority stating that if the bridge is replaced with a fixed bridge alternative, at least 65 feet of clearance at mean high water would be required – similar to the Captain Joseph Azzolina Memorial Bridge connecting Highlands and Sea Bright boroughs.
“The Navesink River at milepost 4.5 is heavily trafficked by a large number of recreational vessels with varying VC requirements,” the Coast Guard letter states. “The commercial industry is mostly boat rentals, charters for sailing and fishing excursions, and occasional barge transits.”
According to Perry, a vessel survey was conducted and examined about 516 vessels that went underneath the Oceanic Bridge on a given day. Of that total, about five vessels needed a 65-foot clearance. And the deepest channel in the Navesink River is just over 6 feet, he added.
“Do we really need a 65-foot bridge to go into a river that has very shallow, navigable waters?” Perry asked. “The depth does not call for the height that this bridge would need, and our simple request was for the Coast Guard to go back and reexamine the height that they are requesting.”
A definitive answer did not arise during the March 31 meeting, which Perry said was “very productive.” And while he’s unsure of when the Coast Guard will return with its findings, he assured that whatever the outcome, “not a single dime” of federal funding for this project would be jeopardized and that it would not slow the project down.
“Everyone recognizes the importance of the Oceanic Bridge for transit to and from Rumson, and all the surrounding communities,” said Hemphill. “Monmouth County has been working hard for years now to develop and to complete a new bridge for our region, prior to the inevitable permanent closure of this important transit crossing for all our local communities.”
This article was originally published in the April 8-14, 2021 print edition of The Two River Times.
