$25 million bridge gets fast-track OK
The Kennebec Journal reported today that the Obama administration has given fast-track approval for a new Richmond-Dresden bridge, a $25 million project slated to receive almost $11 million in federal funding.
According to the KJ, the federal Department of Transportation revised federal policies to allow archaeological data to be recovered while environmental consultations are taking place, which could save up to a year on the project. Federal approvals are expected by February, which would allow work to begin in the spring.
In December, Maine Department of Transportation Commissioner David Bernhardt described the bridge project as a "very high priority" – a point underscored when the swing bridge stuck in the open position on July 30 after a wedge pin sheared off, temporarily closing it to through traffic on Route 197.
The Kennebec Journal reported the new bridge will be about 1,300 feet long and will be at least 75 feet above the Kennebec River to allow Coast Guard ships to travel under it to break ice. The swing bridge, built in 1931, would remain open during the construction period for the estimated 2,300 vehicles a day that cross the river at that location. Once the new bridge is completed, the old bridge would be torn down.
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