East Haddam Swing Bridge Project

The Connecticut Department of Transportation advises the following construction activities for the upcoming week:

Daytime Work:

Roadway:

Town of Haddam

• Crews will continue with retaining wall construction along the southside of Route 82.
• Crews will be installing new warning gates.
• Crews will be conduit trenching (Little Meadow Rd.)

Town of East Haddam

• Crews will be installing new sidewalk.
• Crews will be installing new warning gates.
• Crews will be working on various utility layouts/installs.

Bridge:

• Crews will be working on Span 2 deck replacement.
• Crews will continue removal of existing guard rail and installation of temporary guard rail.
• Crews will prep for miscellaneous steel repairs.
• Crews will continue with bridge painting.
• Crews will continue conduit install on the bridge.
• Crews will continue bridge sidewalk installation.

Nighttime Work:

Bridge:

• Crews will be working on Span 2 deck replacement. (Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday nights)

Vehicular Advisory:

63-Hour Bridge Closure:

• Full bridge closure to vehicles, cyclists, and pedestrians. The scheduled time of this closure is Sunday 8pm until Wednesday 11am.

Overnight Bridge Closures:

• The contractor will be performing overnight bridge closures this week as follows:
• Wed. night into Thur. morning – 11pm to 6am
• Thur. night into Fri. morning – 11pm to 6am

Any changes to these scheduled closures will be communicated.

Detour Info:

Motorist alternative options to cross the Connecticut River during these overnight bridge closures will be as follows:

• Traveling to/from the South – Use the signed detour utilizing the Baldwin Bridge (I-95 Old Saybrook).
• Traveling to/from the North – utilize the Arrigoni Bridge (Middletown-Portland).

Lane Closures:

• Single lane closures on Route 82 will occur Wednesday 11am-3pm and Thursday 9am-3pm within the project limits, traffic flaggers will coordinate the alternating traffic sequence.
• All lanes will be reopened and operational during peak traffic hours.

Marine Advisory:

• The schedule for bridge openings for tall marine vessels this week is as follows:
• Friday (9/15) through Sunday (9/17) at 10am, 1pm, 4pm, and 6pm.
• Monday (9/18) through Thursday (9/21) at 10am, 1pm, and 4pm.

Hurricane Lee now moving northly up the east coastline is anticipated to reach Connecticut in the coming days. Due to potential high winds, there may be times this weekend when the swing span cannot safely open to boaters. Be advised that wind gusts over 35 mph will cause cancellations to swing span openings. Mariners are encouraged to monitor the forecast for the coming days, and plan accordingly.

Be advised that due to construction activities occurring on Monday (9/25) and Tuesday (9/26) the East Haddam Swing Bridge will be unable to swing open for tall marine vessels, all scheduled openings for these two days have been CANCELED.

The revised schedule for the days leading up to and following these cancellations will be as follows:

• Friday (9/22) through Sunday (9/23) at 10am, 1pm, 3pm, 4pm, and 6pm.
• Wednesday (9/27) at 10am, 1pm, 3pm, and 4pm.

Beginning Thursday (9/28), the swing openings for tall marine vessels will revert to the previous schedule as following:

• Monday through Thursday at 10am, 1pm, and 4pm.
• Friday through Sunday at 10am, 1pm, 4pm, and 6pm.

Boaters are advised that the swing span is still in a state of disrepair, if during an opening, something occurs that could potentially put the bridge at risk, all future openings will be canceled until further notice.

The tide clearance board is recommended as the best reference for gauging clearance at time of passage, the board is located on the bulkhead at Goodspeed, it has been adjusted to reflect the vertical clearances to the contractor’s suspended scaffold.

Navigational beacons have been installed on the bridge to designate the channel.

Please be advised:

• Weekend work is not anticipated.
• Click here to review the 2023 ‘63-hour’ bridge closure schedule.
• You can sign up for TEXT Alerts to receive notifications on bridge closures and re-openings, closure cancellations, and any emergency closures. To Opt-in, text the word SWINGBRIDGE to 888777. (Message and Data rates may apply). In addition to SMS messages, if you would like to receive Swing Bridge open/closed status notices via email or a voice call from Everbridge, please click here to enter the required information. Message and data rates may apply. Reply HELP for help, STOP to Opt-out.
• Effective November 11, 2022, any trucks that exceed 16 tons are restricted from using the East Haddam Swing Bridge, until further notice. Routine enforcement by the Connecticut State Police and Department of Motor Vehicles will occur during this 16-ton restriction period.
• Project WEBCAMS for monitoring traffic conditions on the bridge (one on each side of the river) and tide board clearance for maritime are available 24/7, the camera feeds are viewable from our project website homepage.
• Road signage will alert drivers to lane closures in the construction area. Please pay attention to road signage, slow down, and stay safe!
• Access to local businesses and residents within the work zones will be maintained.
• Unforeseen circumstances have the potential to impact all scheduled construction activities.
• The construction work is currently on schedule.

If you have any questions related to construction, please send an e-mail to [email protected]