With 232 bridges to maintain throughout 673 square miles, the Wayne County Department of Public Services has been identifying and prioritizing bridge reconstruction and rehabilitation needs. Wade Trim and other firms have assisted the Michigan County by conducting structural inspections for their Bridge Inventory program. Based on the inventory, the Waltz Road bridge over the Huron River in Huron Township, and the Lilley Road bridge over the Lower Rouge River in Canton, were deemed structurally deficient and closed due to safety concerns. Wade Trim was enlisted to design new structures to replace these nearly century-old, pony truss, steel bridges. The newly constructed Waltz Road bridge has reopened, and the Lilley Road bridge is starting construction.

The Waltz Road bridge span was shifted south and lengthened to 220 feet to increase hydraulic efficiency. More than 300 feet of Waltz Road was improved, and non-motorized features were added, including a 6-foot-wide sidewalk on the east side and a 10-foot-wide, multi-use pathway on the west side that ties into the Huron-Clinton Lower Huron Metropark pathway system. Additionally, electrical infrastructure was designed to support decorative lighting in coordination with DTE Energy and Huron Township.

Before construction of the new Waltz Road bridge could begin, Michigan Department of Environmental Quality permitting required a survey of the Huron River to determine if two endangered freshwater mussels—Rayed Bean and Northern Riffle—were present. Working with ASTI Environmental to conduct the survey, our dive team, normally used for underwater structural inspections, surveyed the deeper portions of the river that were not conducive to wading. No endangered species were found.

The 110-foot, single-span Lilley Road bridge design accommodates two lanes and two six-foot sidewalks. Expected to reopen in late 2019, the improvements include bridge approaches, guardrail replacement, and concrete sidewalks between the bridge and the Middle Rouge pathway to the south.