Second big barge reaches Albion, will head out in morning towards Buffalo
Photos by Tom Rivers
ALBION – A 195-foot-long barge made it to Albion, passing underneath the Ingersoll Street lift bridge at about 7:40 p.m.
The barge is carrying two sections of a pedestrian bridge headed to Buffalo. The tugboat CMT Otter pushed the barge from Rochester to Albion today. The barge and tug are staying in Albion overnight, and will head east at about 6 a.m. on Friday.
Carver Companies, a company based near Albany, expects the barge will reach its final destination in Buffalo on Saturday. The first barge carrying two other sections of the bridge passed through Orleans County on Monday. On Tuesday it reached Buffalo at Ralph Wilson Park Conservancy.
The barge heads west on the canal in this photo taken from the Brown Street canal bridge.
The two sections on the barge today are bigger and heavier than the first two. That caused the barge to sit lower in the water, scraping bottom at times on the journey.
Carver Companies posted on its Facebook page the barge needs to draft 9 feet in order to clear under bridges that are 15 feet, 6 inches.
The two pedestrian bridge sections on the barge today are 2 feet higher than the sections are on the first barge, so Carver has the barge sitting deeper in the water to get under the bridges.
The canal is listed as being 12 feet deep, but Carver Companies said it is lesser than that in some spots. “This resulted in slower speeds than expected today,” Carver posted on social media.
Here are more photos of the barge and tugboat coming into Albion this evening.
The barge emerges from underneath the Brown Street bridge.
The barge carries a long sing urging people to “Follow Me To Buffalo.” The trip started about two weeks ago in Albany and has attracted lots of media attention and many onlookers.
A 1,200-horsepower tugboat has kept the long and heavy barge moving.
Many people took photos and videos of the barge coming into Albion, and tying up for the night between the lift bridges.
