New bridge will likely be big pain

Warren County residents have clamored for decades ? yes decades ? for a new Westwood Bridge. Now that one is on the horizon, life isn?t so peachy in title loan country.

It?s a classic example of being careful of what you wish for, because we?re about to get it.

First, the good news. After a promise from then-Gov. Don Sundquist some six years ago, the state has finally started to take action on constructing a new Westwood Bridge.

Now the bad news. Plans call for completely destroying the current bridge and leaving the road impassable for an estimated two years. In simple terms, this is what you might call a pain in the bottleneck.

The problem folks are having ? and understandably so ? is they don?t want to take detours down side streets while this new bridge is being built. And they don?t want to take their chances jumping the river.

In an attempt to stop this inconvenience, a petition is being circulated and it?s been said 1,000 people have already signed it. The petition urges officials to consider plan B, which is to keep at least one lane of the current bridge operational while a new bridge is built next to it. When the new bridge is complete, the old bridge can then be destroyed.

TDOT holds the trump card in this situation. TDOT can either adhere to the wishes of many local residents and modify its plans, or TDOT can ?stay the course.? As we all know, the stay-the-course philosophy is not always popular.

The way I see it, if Warren County residents want a new Westwood Bridge, we?re going to have to make a giant sacrifice. It will be a two-year headache, but I don?t see any reasonable way to build a bridge next to the current one.

From my untrained eye, there?s just not much wiggle room there. If you don?t believe me, drive out to Westwood Bridge and see for yourself. It?s a tight squeeze in there.

That?s not to mention the fact that right of ways would have to be acquired and families would have to be kicked out of their homes. I consider this a negative aspect, although other folks don?t appear bothered by this alternative.

A pain-free Westwood Bridge project would be a great thing. If only it were as easy as signing a petition. If such a petition works for Westwood Bridge, I?m going to start getting signatures for calorie-free chocolate cake. Hey, if enough people sign it, you just never know.

Constructing a new Westwood Bridge without an inconveniences reminds me of our society today. We want all the rewards without any of the work.

We want to be thin and look great, but we don?t want to exercise. We want to find a miracle diet to make all the fat disappear while still eating all the foods we love.

We want to buy anything and everything, even if we don?t have the money. Just put it on a credit card and pay it off some day.

We want top-notch police protection, more jobs and better schools. Just don?t raise taxes to do it.

If we want a new Westwood Bridge, as I?ve heard people claim for over a decade, we have to be prepared to make some sacrifices. In this case, the sacrifice is extreme and it?s a traffic nightmare.

But until TDOT stumbles upon a magic wand, this is likely a situation we will have to endure. A new bridge is needed. I don?t see how we have any choice but to accept the unfortunate consequences.

James Clark is editor of the Standard. He can be reached at 473-2191 or by e-mail at [email protected].