Letter: New bridge is needed

Dear Editor

Let’s give three cheers to the Sierra Club for their 11th-hour filing to yet again halt construction of a new, much needed bridge across the St. Croix River.

My son was involved in a car accident June 2 on his way to Hudson High School. At 7 a.m. when my son leaves for school the traffic is backed up well beyond our road near the Hwy. 35/64 intersection in Houlton. He must wait for someone to let him in and then make sure he will not be hit by the eastbound traffic coming up the hill from Minnesota traveling at 45 mph. The visibility of this eastbound traffic when viewed through a line of backed-up vehicles is poor at best. Both of my kids have told me that they have been “extremely lucky” on more than one occasion.

There was another accident involving three cars which occurred not more than 250 feet and less than 10 minutes after my son’s accident. The St. Croix County Sheriff’s Department speculated as to a third accident at the bottom of the hill when they arrived upon the scene. Thankfully, no one was injured in these mishaps. Unfortunately, that has not always been the case.

The reality of the situation is that the current bridge and its access points are not designed to accommodate large number of vehicles on the road. This flaw creates unsafe conditions. How many more accidents and fatalities must occur? Who knows? Maybe someday the Houlton hill will be lined with crosses and memorials and the Sierra Club members can stand atop their soap boxes and scream if they deem these crosses and memorials distracting in any way to the beauty of their surroundings in the scenic St. Croix riverway.

Tags: opinion, letter, stcroixriver, bridge, sierra_club, lawsuit