New lease on life for an old bridge

Last weekend was the first since the state Department of Transportation ended the closure of Karsten Thot Bridge at Wahiawa’s north end, to the great relief of everyone weary of the crowded detour routes jutting out to Schofield and back. And just in time for the winter high-wave attractions for the tourists, too.

The structural repairs are done, leaving only the painting beneath the bridge to be done at night. In the next year the anti-corrosion painting will go on the topside, too, and the crews will try to do that with minimal traffic disruption, said Caroline Sluyter. All of that buys the 80-year-old bridge another 10-20 years of life, she said.

That gives the state at least a decade to build a new bridge — and with luck, Sluyter added, it can be built alongside the old one to avoid further closures. Look for the first request for planning funds to come in January.