PRINCE -
A bridge in Fayette County is causing some safety concerns with the West Virginia Division of Highways.
The Thomas Buford Pugh Bridge was the topic of a public meeting held in Prince tonight giving folks the opportunity to voice their concerns about a possible bridge closure.
A main vain pumping commuters to and from Raleigh and Fayette County is the Thomas Buford Pugh Bridge.
Without this bridge, commuting to the city of Beckley would nearly double a motorist's commute.
"I am right now 10-15 miles to work versus 56 miles to work," Prince resident Barbara Shrewsberry said.
If the bridge were to close for people like Shrewsberry, it means a longer commute and a slimmer wallet.
"I make above minimum wage but I would spend over half my money in gas," Shrewsberry continued.
While gas money is on the mind of most Prince commuters.
For this mother of five, Christina Ward access to emergency services is her concern.
Last summer she sliced her leg with a lawn mower and if it wasn't for the quick commute to Beckley minutes could have made the difference between life or death.
"It saved my life," Christina Ward said. "If we would have went the other way I would have went into shock."
But closing the bridge for safety purpose is why the Division of Highways is taking action, because after investigation in September the bridge has been restricted to hold only 3 tons.
"Through a routine inspection we had to reduce it to an even more critical stage," Spokesperson for the DOH Brent Walker said.
The DOH presented two options to the city of Prince.
Option one is to replace the existing bridge which would require it would be closed for 6 months.
The other would be to build another bridge downstream and both of those come with time frames.
With the New River being a protected river the DOH must work with the National Parks Service and the Federal Highway Administration to make a final decision.
The concerns of the folks in Prince will be brought into the discussion when the DOH plans to start their decision making process in mid-March.
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