Bridge repairs to last until May

City Hall yesterday announced a plan to have the Thai-Belgium Bridge on Rama IV Road, which was damaged in a fire on Feb 28, partly closed for repair from Monday until May 15.

Two out of four of the bridge’s traffic lanes will be closed as repairs are carried out, leaving only the other two open, a press conference was told yesterday.

The news conference was led by Jaroon Meethanathaworn, a deputy City Hall clerk, and Pol Maj Gen Jiraphat Phumijit, deputy chief of the Metropolitan Police Bureau (MPB).

As a result of the Feb 28 fire, the 29-yearold bridge’s metal structure bent and caused certain parts of the tarmacked surface of the bridge to sink.

Although the Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) has fixed the bridge so it can now be open to traffic, it still needs major structural repairs, the press conference was told.

Under the repair plan, from Monday until April 18, the two outbound lanes of the bridge will be shut down for repair work, while the two inbound lanes will be closed for repair from April 18 until May 15.

During the morning rush hour, from 6am until 9am every day, one-way traffic will be imposed on the two lanes, which will remain open to traffic as repairs are made. This is aimed at improving the flow of cars heading into the inner part of the capital along Rama IV.

The same two lanes of the bridge will, from 3pm until 8pm, become one-way traffic for the cars leaving the inner part of the city through the same road.

Aside from these two periods, vehicles are allowed to travel in both directions in the two lanes during the repairs, which are expected to be completed before the new semester as most schools begin on May 16.

An initial examination of the bridge’s structure found serious damage to the 25-metre steel beams, after firefighters hosed down a fierce blaze which erupted on Feb 28 in a space under the bridge where rubbish bins are kept.

The beams warped mainly because the heated steel was suddenly cooled down by the water, said Anek Siriphanitchakon, chief civil engineer of the Engineering Institute of Thailand which jointly conducted the inspection at that time.

Though the damage is limited, he suggested City Hall use four pillars to reinforce parts of the flyover that are near the burnt spots.

In 2013, the bridge underwent 30 million baht in maintenance that took about 90 days.

The bridge was then 25 years old. Repair work included resurfacing the road, securing the bridge’s joints and improving lighting.