NEWRY – State transportation officials are seeking input from the public prior to finalizing the design of a new bridge to replace Branch Brook Bridge on Route 26.

Maine Department of Transportation officials are scheduled to meet with the public and Newry officials at 7 p.m. Thursday, April 15, in the town office.

Branch Brook Bridge, which was built in 1919, is structurally sound, but not wide enough, said Project Manager Ben Foster in Augusta.

“It’s gotten to the point where we’ve got to replace it, to get its width to current standards,” he said Monday afternoon.

The 42-foot span carries an average of 970 vehicles per day across the brook. Foster said current 20-year estimates upped the average to 1,300 to 1,400 cars per day.

In addition to replacing the bridge with a pre-cast concrete structure, the state intends to rebuild about 540 feet of approach roadway.

Foster said the center line of the new bridge is to be shifted slightly upstream from the existing alignment. The new structure is to provide two 11-foot-wide travel lanes with 3-foot-wide paved shoulders on either side.

State transportation officials are expected to explain the project’s scope while gathering comments and concerns, and answering questions about the proposed plans.

Construction is expected to begin in the summer of 2005. A temporary bridge is to be built rather than detour traffic.
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