WILMINGTON – Officials are advising those who transit the Cape Fear Memorial Bridge that a project to extend the nearly 60-year-old bridge’s life is set to begin early next year — work that will include temporarily lane closures and possible travel delays.
Contractor Southern Road & Bridge LLC is to begin the $7.1 million project to repair the moveable bridge deck in early 2024. The North Carolina Department of Transportation awarded the contract Nov. 30 with incentives for the company to finish early, potentially earning an extra $500,000.
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Built in 1967, the vertical-lift bridge is reaching the end of its lifecycle and must be monitored, inspected, and maintained on a more frequent basis, officials said. Daily inspections of the steel vertical-lift bridge have shown the need to conduct longer-lasting improvements.
Eastbound lanes heading into Wilmington are anticipated to close as early as Jan. 3, depending on weather and materials. Westbound lanes are to remain open to traffic. Drivers headed into Wilmington must detour via the Isabel Holmes Bridge to Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard to College Road.
The bridge is scheduled to be open in both directions April 1-7 for the North Carolina Azalea Festival in downtown Wilmington.
Tentatively, on April 8, contract crews will close the westbound lanes to traffic and reopen before Memorial Day, officials said.
State transportation officials are working with the Wilmington Urban Area Metropolitan Planning Organization in planning for a replacement bridge. The least environmentally damaging of four proposed options is expected to be identified around the end of next year.
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Officials have said the new bridge will increase vehicle capacity, expanding from four to six lanes and including a protected 15-foot multiuse path to serve pedestrians between Brunswick and New Hanover counties.
