HEWITTVILLE -- The bridge over the Raquette River at Hewittville in the Town of Potsdam is closed for repairs, probably through November.

County Highway Department Director Don Chambers said that for years, his department and the state Department of Transportation had been watching the three concrete arch structures that will be replaced, and concluded after the last inspection that repair was due. “It was time for a major rehab,” Chambers said.

Chambers said the bridge, originally built in the 1920s, was slightly wider than one lane at the time, and that a widening project in the 1970s used beams at each pier to hold precast concrete beams for the wider bed.

He said the contractor, Tuscarora Construction Co., Inc. of Pulaski, will be using improved technology for the precast beam and bed pieces they will use, with guiderails already installed.

The bridge is along Hewittville Road, a short stretch of road connecting River Road along the west bank of the river and Sissonville Road, near the east bank.

Signs will direct motorists along the detour route.

The closest Raquette River crossings are at Sandstone Drive in Potsdam, about two and a half miles south, and the Spring-Ridge Road crossing in Norwood, about the same distance to the north.

Tuscarora bid $1,076,000 for the job, which is on a county-owned bridge along a town road, being paid for with county, state and federal money, Chambers said.

Chambers said the most recent traffic survey of the bridge showed an average of 836 vehicle crossings a day.