Is the Laurel Avenue Bridge Safe?

Holmdel, NJ - Is the Laurel Avenue bridge safe? As recently as March, a tractor trailer hit the bridge and got wedged under it.

A reader who drives under that bridge every day asked that question to Larry Higgs at NJ.com: "The southern side of the NJ Transit rail bridge over Laurel Ave. in Holmdel has seen better days. Too many trucks have made contact, and one of the main beams is noticeably bent and missing parts of the steel beam. There appears to be three main beams and one has been hit by trucks a few times too many. It's severely deformed now."

But an NJ Transit spokesman insists the bridge is still safe.

And the state DOT actually has plans underway to fix that bent beam, called a "bridge girder." Work to repair the Laurel Avenue bridge girder is in the final design process, Jim Smith, an NJ Transit spokesman, told NJ.com.

"A construction schedule has yet to be determined, and NJ Transit will work with the town and county at the appropriate time to coordinate traffic detours," Smith said.

The state Department of Transportation would close any bridge before it got to the point of being unsafe, Smith said.

"The condition (the) reader points out is from over height trucks hitting the bridge," he said. "However, after a bridge strike occurs, NJ Transit thoroughly inspects the structure to verify its integrity."

The North Jersey Coast Line commuter train runs over the Laurel Avenue bridge.