Section 239. Joint liabilities of towns and their joint contracts

Whenever
  any two or more towns shall be liable to make or maintain any bridge  or
  bridges,  the same shall be built and maintained at the joint expense of
  such towns, without reference to town lines, except where the  board  of
  supervisors  has  otherwise  apportioned  such  expense  as  provided in
  section two hundred and seventy-four. The town  superintendents  of  all
  the  towns, or of one or more of such towns, the others refusing to act,
  may, when directed by their respective town boards, enter into  a  joint
  contract for making and repairing such bridges.