The deteriorating Frank J. Wood Bridge on Maine’s midcoast will be partially closed for much of the rest of the year.
The bridge, which spans the Androscoggin River between Brunswick and Topsham, will be closed to northbound traffic for 89 days beginning Monday, according to the Maine Department of Transportation.
During that closure, northbound traffic will be detoured to the Topsham Bypass and Route 196.
Southbound traffic can continue to cross the bridge, except for six nights when the Frank J. Wood Bridge will be closed to all traffic from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m. The Transportation Department hasn’t yet scheduled those full closures.
That comes as construction moves ahead on a new bridge after years of delays. Demolition of the Frank J. Wood Bridge could begin as early as this winter, though no firm start date has yet been set, according to Andrew Gobeil, a spokesperson for the Department of Transportation.
The bridge, built in 1932, has been deteriorating in recent years, with inspections finding parts of the Frank J. Wood Bridge cracking, rusting, corroding and experiencing “severe section loss” and “aggressive deterioration.”
Its condition prompted new weight limits prohibiting commercial vehicles, school buses and fire trucks from crossing the span.
The new bridge will accommodate all traffic and include sidewalks and viewing platforms for pedestrians and bicyclists, according to the Department of Transportation.
The Department of Transportation has argued it’s justified in demolishing the Frank J. Wood Bridge because the costs of renovation exceed those of building a new one. It estimated that rehabilitating and maintaining the bridge over a 75-year span would cost up to $35 million.
But plans for a new bridge have been beset with delays since the state announced in 2017 that it will replace the aging structure. Those delays have stemmed from a legal fight to keep it standing by the Friends of Frank J. Wood Bridge, with the most recent ruling clearing the way for the bridge’s demolition and replacement coming this past January.
Those delays have run up the cost of building a new bridge, projected to last 100 years, from about $17 million to just shy of $50 million.
The new bridge is expected to be completed by late 2026, but open to traffic before construction is completed.