- TxDOT and the City of San Diego are partnering for a multi-million dollar project to rebuild the South Tovar Street Bridge.
- The project is expected to start in August.
- The bridge is one of the city's earliest bridges and was last maintained in the 1960s.
Texas Department of Transportation says the Tovar Street Bridge in San Diego is well past its life expectancy and it shows. By August of this year, the state agency plans to rebuild the bridge.
Whether drivers are moving along South Tovar Street near the Bernanda Jaime Junior High School dodge potholes or people walking on the bridge avoid the fence or gaps on the sidewalk – San Diego’s mayor says big improvements are needed.
“Everyone knows that our streets are really bad here in the city of San Diego. I wish we could just go ahead and fix them all,” said Sally Lichtenberger, San Diego Mayor.
Mayor Sally Lichtenberger said the last time the bridge was “maintained” was back in the 1960s.
She said she and other leaders from the city along with TxDOT looked at the bridge together years ago. They all noticed the cracks and gaps on and under the bridge.
According to TxDOT, the mayor said, the bridge is not up to par.
Fast forward to now - TxDOT said the $3.5-million plan will knock down the bridge and replace it with another 350-feet bridge which will have better sidewalks and fences.
“It’s a project that’s going to continue with our street project we currently have in place. Like fixing the rest of Tovar Street with this same project,” Lichtenberger said.
The other project - KRIS 6 NEWS first reported in January is happening on Highway 359 – just west of the South Tovar Street Bridge in San Diego. The Highway 359 construction is expected to be completed by November 2024, according to TxDOT officials.
These two streets lead up to the three schools.
“With traffic already jammed there. Now, on Tovar Street. We know these are the routes to go to school. They’re only going to be able to use Victoria Street as a route to go to school and back,” Lichtenberger said.
On Monday, April 15, Duval County Commissioners donated a temporary easement near the bridge for the construction project.
Officials say this construction project will take about 15 months to complete. Funding for the project is federally funded, under the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.
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