The work is expected to last for three years.
Baltimore, Md. (KM) – A bridge replacement project is underway in the Boonsboro area of Washington County near South Mountain State Park. Spokesman Charlie Gischlar with the Maryland Department of Transportation State Highway Administration says crews will be replacing the two bridges that carry Interstate 70 over Crystal Falls Drive. He says they were constructed in 1966. :”The bridges are completely safe. It’s just that they’re nearing the end of its workable service life. Maintenance costs would continue to pile up and pile up. So the smartest move here would be to go ahead and do a complete replacement,”: he says.
Gischlar says right now crews are doing the preliminary work on the two spans.
He says crews will work on one bridge at a time. When they complete one span, they will open the new span to traffic, and then move to replace the other bridge.
Wile work is underway, Gischlar says traffic will be diverted to the median where a temporary roadway and bridge will be erected. He says motorists traveling through this work zone should be extra cautious. “It’s going to be a little tight through there. But if you just do the speed limit, keep your eyes on the road, all of the attention on the road, everybody will get from point A to point B safely,” he says.
The project is expected to be completed by the summer of 2025. “Couple of three years here, we should have two brand new bridges on I-70 over Crystal Falls Drive for all of our motorists there, which is about 70,000 per day,” he says.
MDOT SHA says the project costs $26.8 million.
By Kevin McManus