FITCHBURG — Mayor Sam Squailia recently reported that the River Street Bridge replacement project is tentatively projected to be completed by Labor Day “at the latest.”
“That means we are hoping the bridge may be open in just a few short weeks in August,” she posted on social media on July 28 along with photos of the work.
Squailia shared that the bridge project formally began when MassDOT issued its notice to proceed on Jan. 10, 2024. Major on-site construction and the one-way traffic pattern began in June 2024, and the awarded construction bid was $6,339,017.
The bridge is close to downtown, on River Street/Route 31, near the intersection of Main Street and River Street and the new roundabout that is near Crocker Field and the Department of Public Works garage. The street has been restricted to one-way traffic during construction, forcing cars going west to take a circuitous detour.
“MassDOT lists the project’s funding source as ‘non-federal aid,’ meaning the bridge construction contract is being funded through Commonwealth transportation funds rather than federal funding,” Squailia relayed.
The full bridge replacement project includes a new bridge structure, new roadway approaches and sidewalks, utility and infrastructure coordination, and paving.
Squailia went on to say that in the original contract, the opening was listed for June 2027.
“If this timeline holds, the reopening would be approximately nine months ahead of schedule and we could not be more pleased with that progress,” she wrote in her post. “Bridge projects are complicated, expensive, and disruptive, and we know this closure has affected residents, commuters, businesses, and the surrounding neighborhood … but seeing this project move toward reopening this far ahead of the original schedule is a major step forward.”
In her post she shared an old photo of the bridge taken by Jason Kloeppner in 1893, with a trolley crossing the bridge and to the right, a brick building that was once a blacksmith shop and later the site of the first Dillon Boiler Works.
“Then and now, this bridge has been part of Fitchburg’s story for a very long time,” Squailia conveyed. “We are looking forward to getting River Street reconnected and reopened soon. More updates will be shared as we get closer to the final reopening date.”
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