POLAND — Traffic along Interstate 680 northbound will be reduced to one lane through June after a garbage truck damaged a bridge over the freeway earlier this month.

Ohio Department of Transportation District 4 Spokesperson Ray Marsch said five beams on the underside of the Walker Mill Road bridge were damaged when the Ohio Valley Waste Services

truck struck the bridge on the morning of March 12.

The bridge and multiple lanes of the freeway below it will be closed for repairs for the next several weeks.

“This week crews will begin constructing a temporary lane on I-680 northbound at Walker Mill Road to allow the work to take place,” Marsch said. “Over the next three months, repairs to the Walker Mill Road Bridge will include heat straightening and beam work to restore the bridge’s structural integrity.”

Marsch said the average daily traffic on the bridge, built in 1972, is about 2,200 vehicles.

The crash did not cause any injuries, but the driver, Daniel Rios, 66, of Youngstown was cited for the crash.

Sgt. Patrick Abel of the Ohio State Highway Patrol Canfield Post said Rios was cited for having the bed of the garbage collection truck raised. He said the report does not state why the bed was raised.

“I’m not sure why it was up or if he knew it was up,” Abel said.

Abel said either Rios, Ohio Valley, or both could be held responsible for the cost of the repairs.

“It would fall on the driver and then it’s just where the insurance wants to take it from there,” he said. “The owner of the bridge would tend to seek restitution from the driver and then if that can’t happen, then they would probably go after the company themselves.”

Marsch said ODOT will pursue the matter.

“Yes, ODOT seeks restitution in these instances,” he said. “We have a bridge hit fund that we utilize during these emergencies to pay for it in the meantime.”

Local Disposal, the Mars, Pennsylvania-based parent company of Ohio Valley, could not state Monday whether Rios was still employed with the company.

Court records show that Rios is due for arraignment in Mahoning County Boardman Court on Thursday on one count of driving a vehicle with an oversized load with no permit or escort.

Records also show that in Mahoning County, Rios does not have any other traffic violations since receiving a seatbelt ticket in August 2016.

The bridge closure is already causing inconveniences.

The detour for those who use the bridge is to take South Avenue to U.S. 224 to state Route 170 to North Lima Road. The detour is about 4 miles long and takes approximately 10 minutes in ideal traffic conditions.

For emergency services, that is a problem. Boardman fire Chief Mark Pitzer said the bridge is the department’s only direct access to three neighborhoods in its jurisdiction along the Poland Township border.

Pitzer said that includes 12 streets in the Yellow Creek, Bishop Woods and Paulin Drive neighborhoods.

Pitzer said the need for the closure was an immediate concern because the department responded to more than 100 calls in that area in 2024.

“So, we are coordinating with Western Reserve Joint Fire District for emergency response to those areas,” he said. “Last week, we had a fire on Rose Hedge Drive, and Poland arrived there before us.”

Police Chief Todd Werth said his officers maintain regular patrols in the area and have a strong working relationship with Poland Township police.

“It’s an inconvenience for us, but we’re still able to get there pretty quickly, just depending on where we have a unit patrolling, and we routinely do mutual aid responses all throughout that area,” he said.