State crews to inspect westbound Jerry Jackson Bridge

GAINESVILLE - Georgia Department of Transportation crews are slated to begin a full inspection of the westbound Dawsonville Highway bridge over Lake Lanier in Gainesville Wednesday.

Crews will close one lane of the bridge at a time while engineers use what's called a snooper to help inspect the span, known as the Jerry Jackson Bridge.

According to DOT, the snooper has a basket that carries a person under the bridge.

"The snooper looks like a big arm is reaching around then under the bridge. You may not see much happening while you drive across the bridge but the inspection is going on the underside the bridge," District Maintenance Engineer Billy Cantrell said.

The inspection is part of an overall plan to repave the bridge in the future to help eliminate potholes that develop.

"We are pushing to let the repair contract in December and have the work start in early 2014. Please bear with us as we continue patching the potholes as they develop until then,” Cantrell said.

The single lane closures are slated to run from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., weekdays through March 27.