Motorists should expect to encounter nighttime traffic delays as construction crews continue to work on replacing the north and southbound bridges that carry Interstate 295 traffic over Route 1 in Yarmouth.

The Maine Department of Transportation is cautioning drivers about a reduction in Route 1 traffic to a single lane of alternating traffic that began at 8 p.m. Sunday and will last through Friday. The lane closures will occur each day between 8 p.m. and 6 a.m.

Residents who live near the bridge replacement project should expect loud noise and vibrations, according to a news release from MaineDOT. Most of the construction activity is currently focused on the area between the Cumberland Farms convenience store and the Maine State Visitor Information Center, both in Yarmouth. Piles of earth and construction equipment occupy the site.

According to MaineDOT, both the north and southbound bridges, which were each built in 1959, will be replaced with new bridges. The bridges transport traffic over Route 1, which runs underneath each structure. Route 1 serves as a main connector route between the towns of Yarmouth and Freeport.

State transportation engineers say each bridge surface is in satisfactory condition, but point out that the north and southbound bridges’  substructure is in poor condition.

The state’s replacement plan calls for replacing each bridge with three-span bridges, similar to the ones installed more than 60 years ago. The bridges will be constructed with steel girders supporting a composite-reinforced concrete deck. Engineers expect the new bridges to have a long service life with low maintenance cost.

Work on the $27.5 million bridge replacement project began in December but won’t be finished until the end of 2025. CPM Constructors of Freeport is the general contractor. Funding for the project is coming from the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Competitive Highway Bridge Program.

The bridge project may also be done in conjunction with a proposed extension of Beth Condon Memorial Pathway, which runs for more than a mile along Route 1, according to the town of Yarmouth. Beth Condon was a Yarmouth High School student who was fatally struck by a drunken driver in 1993 while walking along the shoulder of Route 1. The pathway could be extended in the direction of Freeport passing by the visitor information center and Casco Bay Ford.

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