By: Michelle Deal-Zimmerman
Source: The Baltimore Sun (TNS)
BALTIMORE — The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has granted a permit to rebuild the Francis Scott Key Bridge, nearly one year after a container ship struck its center span and caused its devastating collapse into the Patapsco River.
The permit grants the Maryland Transportation Authority “permission to construct the bridge that will reconnect the I-695 Baltimore Beltway and improve community accessibility lost following the collapse of the original structure that claimed the lives of six Baltimoreans,” according to a news release Thursday from the Baltimore District of the Army Corps of Engineers.
The regulatory branch of the Army Corps issued two permits last year allowing for preliminary construction tasks, including explosive demolition and removing the remaining portions of the old bridge.
“Less than one year after the catastrophic collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge, Baltimore District is proud to have provided fair and efficient permitting efforts to enable the construction of a new bridge,” said Baltimore District Commander Col. Francis Pera, in a statement. “To have both removed the bridge wreckage and issued relevant permits for its reconstruction on this timetable is a testament to our dedicated Regulatory Branch and our commitment to support an energetic economy across the Mid-Atlantic.”
Gov. Wes Moore unveiled the design for the new bridge last month. It will be a taller cable-stayed bridge and is expected to be completed by October 2028. Nebraska-based construction giant Kiewit Corp. was selected last summer as the bridge’s designer and builder.
The new bridge is estimated to cost between $1.7 billion and $1.9 billion, with full federal funding expected to foot the bill, according to state officials. Its design includes reinforced pier foundations, pier protection islands and six structural “dolphins” for increased protection.
Construction of a temporary trestle to allow construction access is expected to begin this summer. The trestle will require the installation of some 1,200 36-inch steel piles covering an area of 400,000 square feet with the top of the pile being 10 feet above the Patapsco’s mean high-water line, according to the Army Corps.
The Army Corps expects the in-water construction of the new Key Bridge to begin in early fall 2025.
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