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Route 50 "Collapse"
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Route 50 Photo's of Slip
by Smartalix (Subscribe)
Posted on: Jun 20, 2008 at 12:35 PM EDT
Channel: Local News
Location: Bridgeport, WV
These are photo's taken of Route 50 taken 1 week ago. State Route 50 has been closed for over 2 months now and the State WVDOT has deemed it an emergency priority for repair. Calls in to the offices of Greg Phillips and Dave Cava who work for the State will not comment on why is it taking so long to get it repaired and back open. Some people seem to think that it's been left unrepaired because the State thought they had an "access route" through the small residential development, Crystal Ridge. It was documented and tallied by Bridgeport Police that as many as 1,600 vehicles per day were driving through the development even with posted detour routes and road closed signs. Residents recieved permission from the City of Bridgeport to shut their community "access route" down and the City help install a series of barricades and signs. Since the shut down, the State has started some sort of initial phase in the repairs but no actual construction has begun.
The residents of Crystal Ridge have been ridiculed and verbally and physically assualted by motorists that feel they have a right to drive through private property and some motorists have been witnessed driving up onto residents yards to by-pass the barricades. Motorists need to understand that the road that goes through the development is CLOSED and there is not an access through it. There are barricades and road closed signs to prevent the passage. Please follow the detour signs and obey the traffic signs and the speed limits that are posted. Motorists that ignore the signs can be ticketed by the CIty of Bridgeport Police for failing to follow posted signs.
why are we mad at the residents if you was in ther shoes wld you want your kids outside playing with, heavy traffic that doesnt belong running threw your neighborhood, i wldnt good for the residents to step up and put a stop to it
Don't we have state zoning and safety regulations to follow. Water does find a way downhill, RIGHT?
With gas now over $4.00/gal it is outrageous that they are making us use a detour that is so extreme. To inconvenience so many for the benefit of so few, hardly seems very democractic in out democractic society. they're the reason the slip occured.
I traveled thru that section of Rt. 50 for years with no problems Then Crystal Ridge was built with improper drainage and non existent or inadequate retaining walls. A civil engineer will tell you slippage is due to improper grade and drainage.
Is this Crystal Ridge road really private property? The Crystal Ridge residents pay for the maintenance of this road? Could be, but atypical for a Bridgeport neighborhood. But if this is a public road...
So... With the closing of the Crystal Ridge road, the residents of the neighborhood that is responsible for this closure are no longer inconvenienced by it? The perps don't share our pain? Yikes.
FYI... The road thru Crystal Ridge, Emerald Drive, is zoned as private property by the City of Bridgeport until all construction is complete there. The contractor and the residents are paying for all of the maintenance on the road.
FYI... There are multiple reasons for the Route 50 slip. The State failed to fix the road for years. They "band-aided" yearly by throwing asphalt into the large crack in the road. (see photo #2) There was a 16" water line break in that area...
Multiple reasons cont... That water main breakage caused major damage. The first developer of that property, Lang Brothers,(NOT DAN RYAN BUILDERS), stripped and cut all the trees down on the hillside causing large amounts of water run off...
Multiple reasons cont... The amount of traffic on Route 50 while the damage was happening further stressed the slip. Before everyone points fingers at the residents of Crystal Ridge, get your facts straight. Call the WV State DOH; argue with them.
Crystal Ridge has caused this mess. IF Crystal Ridge residents want the road to be closed now, the road should remain closed once Route 50 is fixed. The barriers should remain up and residents should not be able to cut through the entrance of Herita
So you successfully lobied to have this road deemed "private property" until hmmm, somewhere around the time RT50 is fixed and commuters no longer need the bypass? You still can't figure out why people are mad at the CR residents?
This Emerald Drive road is in horrible shape. Appears the residents are waiting to maintain the road until the state will pick up the bill. CRers really CAN have their cake and eat it too!
Possible that "Crystal Ridge resident" is correct in that there are other reasons for the Rt50 problems, but the neighborhood is a, if not the, big problem here. As such, they should feel, not be protected from, the reprecussions.
Why is it taking longer to fix the drainage problem that caused the mess than it took to erect all those homes in such a short time? I SEE SOMEONE DID THE BYPASS THIS BYPASS THAT....DEEP POCKETS... $$$$
As always, money talks. To be able to afford a house in Crystal Ridge you have to have alot of money so of course Bridgeport is going to take care of them.
Actually, I have to use the "extreme" (~2miles) detour every day to go to work just like the rest of you. So, my cake seems to remain uneaten. And the safety of our children playing in our YARDS has nothing to do with "inconvenience".
Misdirected anger and bad assumptions: 1. We did NOT lobby to have the road deemed private property. This was done more than a year before the slip to SAVE the city the expense of maintaining a road constantly damaged by construction traffic.
2. Before the road is turned over to the city, it will be repaired / paved at the expense of the developer.
3. Don't blur the line between homeowner and developer. Most of us signed contracts to have homes built more than a year ago, and are hardly responsible for causing the slip. Does threatening homeowners or driving through yards make sense to you?
4. As for us "feeling the repercussions", we have to take the same detour as everyone else to go east on 50, or even to visit friends in neighboring Heritage Farms.
I am sooo sorry that Route 50 fell off the hillside. 1 year ago, the road thru Crystal Ridge never existed. What would the State and commuters have done if the Crystal Ridge road wasn't there? CRYSTAL RIDGE WAS NEVER INTENDED TO BE A BYPASS!!
NOT ONE SINGLE RESIDENT IN CRYSTAL RIDGE HAS EVER DRIVEN THROUGH NOR HAVE THEY EVER DRIVEN AROUND THE BARRICADE THAT WAS PUT UP BY THE CITY OF BRIDGEPORT. IT WAS INSTALLED FOR SAFETY CONCERNS.
The road is in the shape it's in because construction is still in progress. Why would the City put a final coat of asphalt on when construction crews are driving heavy equipment on it. It will tear it up and it would have to be redone. Get the FACTS.
If Crystal Ridgers want Crystal Ridge to remain private while Route 50 is down, it should remain private when 50 is fixed. No one feels sorry for Crystal Ridgers....they really need to stop whining.
In response to"NOT ONE SINGLE RESIDENT IN CRYSTAL RIDGE HAS EVER DRIVEN THROUGH NOR HAVE THEY EVER DRIVEN AROUND THE BARRICADE "that is so not true...there is a house on the end of the street that has barracades on both sides...
The residents in that community are being wrongfully blamed. The road was barricaded to stop the illegal traffic that was coming through that community. It is not a by-pass and it was never intended as one. That community is not to blame.
Call : 304-842-1550 Dist. Manager WVDOT - Greg Phillips 304-627-2140 Supt. of Harrison County WVDOT - Dave Cava 304-558-2000 Governor of WV - Joe Manchin TELL THEM, WE NEED IT FIXED NOW! Ask them why it's taking so long to fix.
"What would the State have done if the Crystal Ridge road wasn't there [for a bypass]?" They would still be using a fully functional Rt50.
"Get the FACTS."? That sounds like some "misdirected anger". Surely this ordeal has taught you that there are fewer "facts" than there are perspectives. You seem to recognize only the "facts" that support your position.
Please get your facts straight. The "residents" didn't have anything to do with that slip. They live in a community that happens to be above a slip that closed a road. The City closed the road thru their community and everyone is mad at them? WHY?
I live in CR. The State just started working on 50 yesterday. Don't you think they would have started sooner if the access thru CR was never there? Thay had an illegal by-pass and no pressure from anyone to get 50 fixed. Why should they care?
We purchased a home in Bridgeport because of the supposed safety of the community. After all, according to the mayor and chief of police, we have the lowest crime rates in the state of West Virginia.
If you are really concerned about the ultimate safety of your children, don't let them play in the road. Parenting 101, I'd say.
We built a new home because we have small children and didn't want to be spending time fixing an older home. Since moving into our home 4 months ago, I've called 911 twice due to people running through my neighbors' yard and shouting obscenities.
The City of Bridgeport's tractor drove over my silt fence and across my yard to mow the water tower property because he couldn't be inconvenienced by driving around.
And I've called 911 once because someone came up our driveway so fast that I had to pull my children (both under that age of 5) out of the way of chasing their ball so they wouldn't get hit.
I've debated getting a Concealed Handgun License, since the police obviously don't have the staffing to protect us 24 hours daily. If I have to entertain such thoughts, Bridgeport is obviously not the safe community it prides itself on being.
What if crystal ridge wasn't there and Route 50 was closed? What would the State have done then? Built an access road for people to drive through? Would 50 be fixed by now? What's the deal? Why is it taking so long?
If a less than 2 miles detour really affects your gas budget that greatly, maybe you ought to consider trading in your gas guzzler for something more fuel efficent--say a Toyota Prius, a Honda Civic, or a diesel compact car.
So you're saying that children shouldn't be allowed to walk down a 15 mph street from their bus stop to their residence because inconsiderate motorists ignore detour signs and drive 40-50 mph? Apparently we attended different parenting classes.
2 mile detour? What if I live at Maple Lake and work at the airport? Is 279 a reasonable detour? "Get the facts." CR Mother is thinking about getting a gun over this? Please. CRers, find another spokesperson.
Yes, it's reasonable! Use your brain and follow directions. My 3 year old understands, "follow directions". Read the detour signs, "follow directions". Stay out of posted property, "follow directions". It's the law... FOLLOW DIRECTIONS.
My child attends Cubby's Daycare which is on 279 & I live in CR. I have to take the detour route because I know I am not permitted to drive thru the barricade. Route 50 and the road thru CR is CLOSED. So all of us need to use the detours.
According to google maps, maple lake to the airport over US 50 is 3.1 miles....going 279 to 131 is 3.4 miles...
The City has given absolute authority to the Bridgeport Police Dept. to ticket anyone that ignores the detour signs and feels they have any right to drive thru the barricade in CR. It is there for a reason and violators will be ticketed.
I live in Crystal Ridge. I guess what everyone is asking is please be respectful. Please don't drive up onto people’s yards. Don't drive up there to see if you can get thru. Don't speed thru there because you're mad you have to take the detour.PLEASE
I've read the comments to date & many people have said don't blame the CRer's b/c the CIty closed the road. I'm sure if you look it was after complaints were received by the city from CRer's.
The biggest problem with Rt 50 and CR being closed is the ones who work at the air center which is accessed below Lang Brothers by some who have to take 279 than 131 than back track on Rt 50
why don't we all respect the detour signs and then after Rt 50 is opened back up and CR is open on both sides, everyone start driving through CR then. That would force CR to close the road again and only Inconvenience them.
CR should have to remain PRIVATE to maintain their own roads,streets,lanes,drives or WHATEVER they decide upon in the FUTURE.The city apparentally isn't looking at the big picture they'll be up against later. It's only the beginning of MANY PROBLEMS
We should all drive through CR after 50 is fixed? Great solution. Well you can't triple stamp a double stamp Lloyd, and my dad can beat up your dad.
They didn't make the slip happen. They don't want Route 50 closed. They don't deserve the ridiculous accusations that everyone is saying. I don't blame them for shutting down their development. People driving thru CR have NO RESPECT. Good for you CR.
The City of Bridgeport has CLOSED the road thru Crystal Ridge. There is a locked gate and barricade that will not permit anyone, not even the residents, to travel thru it. It is an inconvenience for all, EVEN FOR THE RESIDENTS AT CRYSTAL RIDGE.
I hope you all slide down off that hill.
Wow, that would do wonders for 50!
There was never a problem with that stretch of road until the home construction began...The taxpayers of this state should not have to pay to fix faulty planning , landscaping , and construction techniques
What seems to be the hold up in the construction? It was deemed an emergency fix? Rt. 707 has 1/100 the traffic on it but the State is fixing that like it's a road to the Gov. house. Is it because the FBI employees use it? WHAT'S THE DEAL WITH THAT!
Route 50 up the 131 to the 279, 279 to Route 50, then the 2 miles instead of just 2 miles or alittle over from Bridgeport. Maybe that should have closed it off on the Bridgeport side instead of Hertiage Farms side and let them do the miles too.
Just because you did not see any problem with that stretch of road in the past, doesn't mean it hasn't had any.
It does make a person wonder why 707 has such a priority over U.S. Rt. 50. I would be interested in hearing the justification for this? Gov Manchin, you have the floor.
I'm confused how the Crystal Ridge residents are NOT impacted by the closure....they drive too and if they are heading that direction have to go around. Closing it on the Bridgeport side would just change the subset of people affected (CR or not)
CR get over your Bridgeport attitudes. Other people want safe neighborhood too but don't see us blockading people out. My husband works at the air center and drives far enough, now with a longer detour. Fix Rt 50 NOW. Slide down that hill. Ha,Ha!
from the very beginning of the constrution of those houses being built we all at airport new that this was going to happen,the slippage is only going to get worse, they shouldn't even gave them a permit to build houses there, period!
They paid for their safe neighborhood. What is your excuse?
CR SHOULD ALWAYS REMAIN PRIVATE AND DEAL WITH THEIR PROBLEMS AS THEY ARISE IN THE FUTURE
Ah, attacked for the Bridgeport attitude! What took you so long? I will take a wild guess that your subdivision just hasn't happened to have a major road closed between entrances. We whine about kids' safety - you whine about a little detour?
Oh....I get it...so you have to be rich to have a safe neighborhood now.. Detours do start adding up to SoMe people regardless how insignificant it may seem to others..
It's all DEBT
$$=Safe neighborhood? Sometimes I get so caught up in counting my money and bribing city officials that I forget what it is like for the commoners. Give me a break - most of us are working stiffs too, and $ has nothing to do with any of this mess.
Can't we all just get along?! I can't believe the anti-sentiment from people just because a detour was put in to remove dangerous traffic from a neighborhood. It isn't about who has money or who lives where, it's about safety and common sense.
Have you been reading the debate above? It is not "common sense". It is not all about safety. There are multiple issues. There are reasonable points coming from different sides.
I agree with others on this post. Keep your kids out of the street...that is not a playground. I have driven through Crystal Ridge before and your kids just stand in the middle of the road as if they they did not have to move out for traffic
I agree!!!!!CR SHOULD ALWAYS REMAIN PRIVATE AND DEAL WITH THEIR PROBLEMS AS THEY ARISE IN THE FUTURE!!! Crystal Ridge should always be private and their roads should never be made Public! KEEP UP THE FENCE!
Great advice from the other poster! KEEP YOUR KIDS OUT OF THE STREET!!! Parenting 101.
this is your can of worms, regards to common sense its a money issue gas is over $4.00/gal, who wants to pay for a couple extra miles out of the way? safety? look at all the people that live on Rt 50, that do not complain as loudly as CRer's
People that live on Rt. 50 don't complain about highway traffic going past their houses? Who would have thought... I suppose it might be because they decided to live on the MAIN ROAD! Aren't you late for a Mensa meeting or something?
Similarly, CRers bought houses built on fill dirt on a cliff. You are surprised that they are falling off the cliff and have to be demolished? You had the state close your road and inconvenienced many and you are surprised that people are upset?
Apparently people who live on a MAIN road have enough intelligence to teach children that roadways are not playgrounds and should be respected :-)
$$$ have nothing to do with this? WAKE UP AND SMELL THE COFFEE!!!
CR'S NEED ALL THE FLOOD AND MINE INSURANCE THEY CAN GET. NOT ONLY ARE THEY ON A CLIFF BUT ALSO ABOVE A MINE ACROSS FROM AN AIRPORT.SOMEBODY NEVER DONE THEIR HOMEWORK FROM THE GET GO- GOT LEMONS MAKE LEMONADE TO SUIT YOUR TASTE
WE WON!! HAHAHAAHHHAAAAAHHHAAA. TAKE THE DETOUR!! HAHHAAAHAAHHAAHAA
Our kids are not playing in the street; they own the street; they're allowed to do anything they want... THEY DON"T STAND IN THE MIDDLE OF THE STREET. They're kids, they play everywhere! Get real and take the detour until Route 50 is re-opened.
The work has begun on Rt 50!! We're saved. All of our homes will stop sliding off the cliff and everyone will be able to drive on Rt 50 soon. Horray! Thank you WVDOH for saving us all. Thank you everyone for helping us get thru this. We're saved.
of who's at fault for the slip. I chose to live at CR. I DID NOT choose to have Rt 50 slip. I DID NOT choose to have 1,600 cars drive thru my development at 50MPH because people can't read. If you can't follow detour signs then that's your own fault.
Call the Bridgeport Police. Call the City of Bridgeport. Call the WVDOH. Call the Govenor's office. Call someone who actually gives a hoot that you aren't allowed to drive thru that development. Good luck finding someone who does care. No one cares.
If I were to live in CR and I have to go to Maple Lake to pick up my girlfriend or have to go to Grafton to see my Grandmother? Am I allowed to drive thru the barricade because I live there? Or do I have to take the detour route?
According to the WV Geological Survey there are no mines anywhere near Crystal Ridge. Of course typing in ALL CAPS does lend you a certain air of authority.
It is a well known fact that the people who live in Bridgeport have a tremendous "Holier the Thou" attitude. The CR group just proves that. Why don't you build a wall around your community to keep the peasants out and Deep Pockets can be the king?
If your kids own the street at CR then my kids must own Rt. 50. Why don't you have your spoiled little brats come down to Rt. 50 and I'll have my kids teach your kids some respect and show them what a good ol' country butt whoopin' is like?
Yes, CRers have to take the detour like everyone else.
It's not just an attitude, it's the truth!
If CR gets completely flooded....hopefully somebody has an ark nearby...
The work on Route 50 is not to fix the road, but to dig a moat to begin the process of fortifying Bridgeport. Deep Pockets is to be the treasurer, Smartalix the jester, and we'll have an anarcho-syndicalist commune rather than a king.
It is good to be king. Thug, I appoint you chief wallbuilder. Outsider - no, residents cannot go through the barricade either.
I'm sure the barricade really is an inconveniance to the residents of CR when they go shopping in Grafton, oh wait a minute, I bet it's when you want to take your boat to Tygart Lake, well there's always Stonewall Jackson you can go to.
I'm sure Deep Pockets just has the private chopper parked at the airport pick them up from their front yard. The yacht is too big for Tygart lake anyway.
It is an inconvenience every day to get to 79N for work, but I admit it is not as bad as going from Maple Lake to downtown Bridgeport. As for the boat, there is not room to turn it around in Tygart, so it stays at the other home in the Caribbean.
Crystal Ridge is a crappy vinyl neighborhood. Your kids don't own the street...that was a dumb thing to say. I agree with the other posters. If Crystal Ridge does become a public road again...lets all drive thru it and help preserve Rt. 50.
You should make the road through CR a toll road. Then the rich could get richer and the poor get poorer. I'd pay a quarter to drive through and show my kids how the rich live! I can only hope to aspire to the level of a Bridgeport resident.
So, is it "a crappy vinyl neighborhood" or the "mansions of the extremely wealthy"? Or is that all part of the cake and eating it to?
You work Deep Pockets? I thought you had to be independently wealthy to live in CR?
Indeed "that was a dumb thing to say." So ignorant and inflammatory that surely the poster was not a CRer, but someone on the other side of the debate seeking hostility against the CRers. Right?
A quarter!?!? Are you nuts? The toll would be at LEAST five dollars. Besides, if your greatest aspiration is to own a home in Bridgeport, you might want to seek counseling.
Actually, if it is a private road, then the kids would be set to inherit it once their parents die (and presumably pave it with gold). And if it is a public road, then the people of the city of Bridgeport own the road, including the kids (by proxy).
I am sure that one by one the house will continue to fall...and our traffic patterns will continue to be messed up. Note to self: Never build/buy a house that was built on fill dirt...chances are it will fall over the hill.
We'll be seeing the FOR SALE BY OWNER signs soon...dumb de dumbby
i'm not sure they will be able to sell for what they owe on them. this whole fiasco has killing their property values.
That people don't know the facts. CR was NOT built on fill dirt. The slip WAS in fact caused by a water main break under Rt. 50. The road in CR is owned by the developer, Dan Ryan UNTIL construction is finialized then the City owns the road. Grow up!
Can you all help me? I have to decide which car to take out this weekend...the Porsche or the Lexus. I have to take Poopsie, my dog, to her "shrink" because she needs help. All the traffic up here is driving her crazy. I'm rich you know...;) TaTa...
My property value has increased now that there isn't any traffic driving thru. The privatizing of our neighborhood by putting that barricade up makes it a lot like a gated community. In fact, I'm making so much $$ from this, I am building another.
people seem like they own the road and when they dont want to maintain it down the road later then the city of bridgeport can have it to maintain and looks to me right now its a private road stay off their road or they will sue you dumb crybabies
This is not a "solution" but it sure helps....I park my car and sneak into CR at night and poop in their front lawns or on their sidewalk. It just makes me feel better. Everyone should try it. I spelled CR last time, boy that was fun!
These are photo's taken of Route 50 taken 1 week ago. photo's ???
Thanks! My grass is growing much nicer now!!!!
why is everyone attacking those that live in cr, they wanted a safe place to live, what bridgeport biggits have to dip in there vacation money to use detour lol, how about the cr residents come drive threw your yard,cuse you alittle bit, see how you
better yet lets go to briarwood,southhills,sherwood,ridgeway etc, drive threw some yards there you biggits wouldnt be happy either,so why pick on the cr residents, they bought houses there they didnt develop the property,figures the rich biggits comp
what kind of brilliant people waste money to build a home on the steep side of a mountain any way?
1st snow , bport res. need to BLOCKADE the entrances to cr. They dont let US use their road, they shouldn't be allowed to use our plowing services. Let's see how they like them apples on their private road!
It would be one thing if everyone used the road as the 15mph road it is, but treating it as a highway and traveling at highway speeds is just selfish and dangerous. As for the plowing services, they pay for those just like everyone else, nice try.
ummmm i drove to the barricade you crybabies wanted and ive seen dirt roads in better shape if it is a private road then state not need be there to maintain and another thing cant do more then 15 on the trashy road you people live on
and another thing if you people would do something with your yards and not be on here whining so much then you wouldnt have any complaints but seems like all you people wanna do is sit at computer and whine guess what no bottles of sympathy here
but cr, is not part of Bridgeport............... they are their own community! I say we let either the municipalities of either Grafton or Flemington Annex them! Good ridence to bad rubish!!
(cont.) I wondered back in the 70s why the roadway was not rebuilt and redirected in another location. It would make more sense than just re-enforcing and money for that. Buy property and redo the roadway. It definitely is not safe.
It is not the children's fault. These people bought homes, pay taxes, and want a safe community. Why blame the children? If everyone would have driven safely and appreciated the detour the residents would not have complained.
Where is the DOH? The police officers? Hurry and get the problem solved (work day and night) Put on an extra officer to make sure the detour is enforced. And, above all, redirect the roadway(build an overpass). Road has been a mess since the l970s
CR IS part of Bridgeport, it has already been annexed.
We're trying to keep the road trashy, it helps hide the fact that we are all filthy rich and make up more than 95% of the money in the state of West Virginia. Tax shelter ya know....
And get our hands dirty?!?!
My yard is the way it is because people like you keep driving up onto it. RESPECT... do you have any? If you could read, you'd know the sign says ROAD CLOSED. If you respected it, you wouldn't be in the development to see my yard. worry about YOU...
The "worry about YOU" and "RESPECT" arguments could be used against you and other CRers too. Be careful pointing fingers, sir. And don't come back and ask me what I am talking about. Think a bit. A bit of thought would be useful on this forum.
You WILL save gas by using the detour. You use more fuel by driving all the way up into CR to see if you can drive thru the barricade. When you see you can't, you have to drive all the way back to the detour that you should have used in the 1st place
well, if Crystal Ridge people had any sort of yard, their kids wouldn't have to play in the road. someone who spends that much money for crappy houses and crappy landscapes i have no pitty for. i don't blame people for driving through a yard
The detour uses more gas than if we still had Rt. 50 or if you had not cried to the authorities and had our more palatable CR detour closed.
All of you people whining about the enormous financial burden of the additional gas could probably save the difference by switching from Marlboros to generics. All of you waste more $ than this on far sillier things.
Yeah, try Menthols...
Everyone is missing the point here. The point is the DOH has been dragging their feet to fix the road. THEY could have prevented this whole mess. Quit arguing on how RT 50 got this way-use the detour. I DO. I have better this to do than whine.
Your anti-whining rant sounds like whining. You have something better to do? Then do it. Don't hang out here.
"What if crystal ridge wasn't there and Route 50 was closed? #1- "IF" Crystal Ridge" wasn't there, RT 50 would NOT be closed. #2- IF a toad had wings...he wouldn't bump his _ on the ground either!
Anonymous says ...
On Friday, Jun 20 at 4:46 PM
Our tax dollars at work...