The Chester River Bridge at Chestertown on Rt 213.
The Maryland State Highway Administration, as part of the State’s Bridge Preservation Program, will have a contractor performing routine maintenance operations on the Route 213 drawbridge over the Chester River on Monday, December 18.
According to an email from Bob Rager, SHA District Community Liaison, work will be done from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. and may include test openings of the draw section of the bridge that should last no longer than those needed for an average vessel’s passage. Travelers between Kent and Queen Anne’s counties should allow for possible delays or plan alternate routes.
Traffic should be able to cross during the maintenance work except for short intervals when the draw-bridge is being tested. Closures of one lane are also possible.
Work will be performed by Covington Machine and Welding, Inc. of Annapolis, Rager said.
Michael Heffron says
So, they aren’t actually closing the bridge?? Or are They? The headline and the article are conflicting.
Peter Heck says
Thanks, Michael. We’ve modified the title and added some text to clarify. The bridge should be crossable during most of the maintenance work, though there may be delays. It all depends on what they find and what they need to do. There may be lane closures. The bridge itself may have brief closures while the draw-bridge is opened and closed. As it says in the message from the State Highway Administration, closures should be no longer than the usual time it takes for the drawbridge to open, a boat to pass through, and then the drawbridge to close–less than half an hour, more likely 15 minutes at a time. However, we don’t know when those 15-30 minute closings will be or how many of them there might be. Probably not many unless they find a problem in the draw-bridge section. Hopefully, there will be no problems.