State agencies meet with public on Key Bridge reconstruction project

DUNDALK, Md. — On a rainy Tuesday afternoon at CCBC in Dundalk, Baltimore County residents had a chance to weigh in on the Francis Scott Key Bridge reconstruction project, as Maryland state agencies aim to move forward with demolition of what’s left of the bridge and construction of a new one.

The Maryland Transportation Authority has filed an application for water quality certification and submitted a joint application for a permit to build a new bridge. Listening to neighbors is part of the process.

“We just want to make sure those communities are heard,” Greater Baybrook Alliance representative Meredith Chaiken told WMAR.

Chaiken was there in hopes that the Curtis Bay and Brooklyn areas, located at the southwest base of the bridge, would be included in the reconstruction process. Chaiken estimates that truck traffic has doubled or tripled since the bridge came down.

“We have multiple truck routes in our community, and since the bridge collapsed, those truck routes have been used well beyond their intended capacity,” Chaiken explained.

“I just think there are opportunities now to mitigate the impact of truck traffic on residential areas and small businesses,” Chaiken added.

Posters presented at Tuesday’s meeting showed potentially impacted areas and environmental effects.

According to the MDTA, the proposed new bridge will be higher than the original to accommodate larger vessels.

“The permits are primarily for the impacts that the Key Bridge reconstruction will have on wetlands, both from construction and from the ongoing impacts of the new bridge,” MDTA chief engineer Jim Harkness told reporters.

The exact outline of the new bridge is not yet completely defined; three weeks ago, the state selected the designer of the new bridge.

LEARN MORE: Kiewit Corporation Selected to Build Key Bridge Replacement

“Because we started this process very early and without any idea of the bridge, we had to make some assumptions about the impacts. We had to do some digging to come up with something that was simple and achievable for the contractor when they start designing and building the bridge. So we don’t really have a concept to work from at this point; we’re just working from a square footage of impact,” Harkness said.

In a water quality certification application document, the MDE said the environmental impacts of the reconstruction will be both temporary and permanent, but the project will minimize effects on wetlands and waterways where possible.

“The impacts will be primarily on the Patapstco River where we have new pylons, new pier foundations, so those will be the impacts, and on the access roads where we’re impacting the non-tidal wetlands, the tidal wetlands,” Harkness explained.

The project will likely take about three to four years, depending on demand, with construction expected to begin in January 2025 and the new bridge opening to traffic in fall 2028.

Comments will be accepted through October 1. If you would like to comment, you may send an email to [email protected] or a letter to:

Maryland Department of the Environment

Division of tidal wetlands

Attention: Matt Wallach

1800 Washington Blvd, Suite 430

Baltimore, MD 21230-1708