The Washtenaw County Road Commission and three western Washtenaw townships have inked contracts that will lead to major bridge repairs, slated to begin late this summer and early fall.

Dancer Road and Lima Center Road bridges in Lima Township, and the Waldo Road Bridge in Sharon Township will be replaced, while the Mast Road Bridge in Webster Township will be repaired.

Of the 16 bridges in critical condition Washtenaw County, five are closed — four in Lima Township and one in Sharon Township.

The Lima Center Road Bridge is located between Scio Church and Jerusalem roads in sections 33 and 34 of Lima Township; the Dancer Road Bridge over Mill Creek is located between Liberty and Jerusalem roads, and the Waldo Road Bridge is located between M-52 and Peckins Road in section 1 of Sharon Township.

SL&H Contractors Inc. was recently hired for the three bridge replacements in Lima and Sharon townships for a total combined contract price of $264,600.

Both the Dancer Road and Lima Center bridges cross the Mill Creek while the Waldo Road Bridge crosses the Pleasant Lake extension.

Roy Townsend, county road engineer said the combined bid was expected to be $300,000, but the costs came in lower than expected.

Previously, it was estimated that the Dancer Road Bridge would cost about $120,000, while estimated costs for the Lima Center Road Bridge and Waldo Bridge were estimated at about $100,000 each.

Included in the work is beam repair and bridge deck replacement, and road approach improvements, as well as possible abutment repairs.

The township and the Road Commission will split the costs, but with matching funding, it’s expected that the township will pay about $57,000. That amount will be split in three payments over the next three years.

This year, according to the contract, the township will be expected to pay about $19,000.

Work is expected to begin on all three bridges in September and be completed by mid-November, Townsend said.

In addition, deck repairs on the Mast Road Bridge in Webster Township will begin in June after schools lets out, Townsend said. There will be one lane of traffic with traffic signals throughout the process that will allow traffic to travel in one direction at a time.

View Bridge replacements in a larger map

Lisa Allmendinger is a regional reporter for AnnArbor.com. She can be reached at lisaallmendinger@annarbor.com.