Westport residents fear that renovations to the historic Cribari Bridge could lead to 18-wheeler tractor-trailer trucks cutting through the Saugatuck neighborhood.

The state said at a town hall meeting last week it currently has five options it is considering for the bridge, and confirmed to News 12 that four of them would give the bridge the ability to handle the trucks.

"We consider it an existential threat to the community to allow these types of trucks to be here," said RTM Member Matthew Mandell, who represents the area.

The bridge was built in 1884, and last had real renovations in the early 1990s.

"There's no question this bridge requires serious attention," said Laosie King, the Connecticut Department of Transportation Deputy Commissioner, at the town hall.

According to the DOT, the bridge's issues include being too low and narrow, not having a dedicated space for bikes or an ADA-compliant sidewalk, and only being able to hold 20 tons because of its deteriorating condition.

"This conversation's been going on for over 10 years, and we still haven't come to a resolution," said Mandell.

The state says no decisions have been made yet, but the options include doing no work except maintaining the bridge as is, which would keep trucks off it, but only give it an estimated lifespan of 10-15 years before major construction was needed.

Instead the DOT says it could "conserve" it - meaning do some light work to improve safety and specifications, or rehabilitate it, which would mean more or less building a new bridge on top of the old one. Each of those options would have an estimated lifespan of 25-40 years.

The state says its preferred option would be to build a new bridge on the same site, which would last 75-100 years. It could also build a new bridge a little bit to the north, although that would require it seizing land from some property owners. "We have nothing to gain from doing a project that residents oppose," said King, "we also have a responsibility to the taxpayers and the united states to use taxpayer funds wisely."

Residents say they fear any of those would lead to apps automatically diverting trucks to the new Cribari Bridge any time that I-95 nearby started getting backed up.

"We have a lot of people running to the train in the morning, rushing home at night, and at that hour, semis may not be able to see pedestrians," worried Dara Lamb, the co-founder of the Westport Alliance for Saugatuck.

"The turns in Saugatuck are not compatible with long tractor-trailers," agreed Ben Meyer, the owner of Bridge Square, a shopping plaza right next to the bridge, who says students and people are often running in and out in the area.

Some residents are proposing a compromise to the rehab option to the state - saying it should make a safer and wider bridge on top of the higher one, but keep a physical height barrier.

"If we can find a way to constrain the trucks then I think the DOT and Town of Westport can get along very well, collaboratively, and find a solution," said Mandell.

King vowed the state would work with the town throughout the process.

The public comment period is open through April 17.