The North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) will replace the Alligator River Bridge in late 2024 or early 2025.
The 64-year-old swing-span bridge on U.S. Route 64 will be replaced by a modern two-lane, fixed span, high-rise bridge just north of the current bridge. The two 12-foot travel lanes will have 8-foot shoulders.
Eleven test pilings were installed earlier this month, completing the first step in the replacement. They are used as a foundation structure for the bridge. They will be removed when construction begins.
The testing piles help engineers learn about the soil layers, the depths, and soil consistency for the bridge replacement.
“The soil samples and field data we collected during the test pile project will help us make revisions that determine the final construction design of the bridge structure,” said Pablo Hernandez, resident engineer at NCDOT.
Last year, the U.S. Department of Transportation awarded the project $110 million in federal funding from the Multimodal Project Discretionary Grant to help pay for the replacement. It is expected to cost $286 million.
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Source: Island Free Press, WAVY Norfolk
