Dec. 24 (UPI) — The $2 billion rebuilding of the Francis Scott Key Bridge is slated to start with preconstruction activities Jan. 7 in the Port of Baltimore.
The $2 billion for the bridge rebuilding project was included in the congressional funding bill that President Joe Biden signed into law Saturday.
“The people of Maryland are grateful that Congress has strongly supported helping us rebuild the Francis Scott Key Bridge expeditiously,” Maryland Gov. Wes Moore said in a statement Saturday.
“This action affirms the central importance of rebuilding the bridge not just to Maryland, but the nation,” Moore said. “This bipartisan agreement is a win for port workers, truckers, small businesses, service members and working families throughout Maryland and across America.”
The Maryland Transportation Authority awarded the bridge construction contract in August to the Kiewit Corp. of Omaha, Neb.
Kiewit engineers plan to build a bridge that is taller and longer than for former bridge that collapsed and killed six workers after being struck by a cargo vessel March 26.
Construction work is to start in 2025, with the new bridge scheduled to open in fall 2028, according to the Maryland Department of Transportation.
The preconstruction activities include surveying the bridge site and other engineering activities.
The Port of Baltimore shipping channel will remain open while bridge construction is underway.
The transportation authority is using a “progressive design-build process” in which a project delivery team supervised by one entity and working under a single contract will provide design and construction services to rebuild the bridge as quickly, safely and efficiently as possible, officials said.
The project requires a significant amount of skilled labor and will include local businesses as much as possible, according to the transportation authority.