It’s part of the Governor’s call for replacing 69 structural deficit bridges in Md.
Hyattstown, Md (KM). The Maryland State Highway Administration says construction is expected to begin next year on a new Route 355 (Frederick Road) bridge over Little Bennett Creek in Hyattstown. “MDOT–SHA’s contractor is establishing a field office in the area. Once that’s get done in early 2019–like a week and a half, two weeks–then people will start seeing crews out there,” says SHA spokesman Charlie Gischlar. The span is located in Montgomery County just over the border from Frederick County.
He says the first order of business for the crews is constructing a temporary bridge to divert traffic away from the work site. This allows the project to move much quicker.. “When you don’t have to maintain traffic and do traffic shifts on a bridge, we can really get a lot of work done, especially during the demolition phase of the project which will then be accomplished after the temporary road’s established,” says Gischlar.
SHA says this project is part of Governor Larry Hogan’s call for the replacement of 69 structurally deficient bridge across Maryland. Gischlar says the current span was constructed in 1925, and it’s starting to show its age. “As they get older, they’re safe to travel on, but it just becomes more economically feasible to just replace them,” he says.
The project is expected to be completed in the summer of 2020, according to Gischlar, at a cost of $8.3-million.
SHA says the new span will be three feet higher than the current bridge to allow a wider clearance for water to pass underneath. “In addition to constructing the temporary road and replacing the bridge structure, we’re also going to be restoring a part of Little Bennett Creek, about 900 feet of it. That way it prevents that stream bank erosion from occurring,” says Gischlar.
More than 8200 vehicle travel through that section of Route 355 each day, according to SHA.
The contractor for this project is Concrete General, Inc. of Gaithersburg.
By Kevin McManus
Rt. 355 Bridge Over Bennett Creek (SHA Photo)