Are we at the end of I-20 bridge project? Today is the deadline
AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) - Contractors have until Thursday to finish work on the Interstate 20 bridge project that’s been plaguing traffic in the area for nearly six years.
We’ve reported time and time again how the proposed end date for the project over the Savannah River keeps changing.
It’s rather cliche to say pack your patience in a story like this – especially after nearly six years of construction and constant lane changes decorated with a sea of orange barrels.
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“What crews were doing was cleaning out drainage structures,” said Kyle Collins, who works with the Georgia Department of Transportation. “They were doing the seal to the concrete ts. It’s basically an epoxy. It’s almost a glue, you know, that has some flow in it and some movement that’s standard on the ts to allow the flexing service because most folks don’t understand that bridges are actually made to kind of be living beings and they move up and down as traffic drives over it and that’s part of their sustainability.”
The new deadline for final acceptance is March 6, and if they don’t, “that costs the contractor,” said Collins.
Before construction started in 2019, a bridge built in the 1960s was causing more harm than good.
“We had constant maintenance issues, challenges with emergency response,” said Collins. “Anytime there was a minor fender bender, having that extra space I think it’s not only going to reduce crash, increase safety, but in the event there is some type of incident, crews have a lot more area to work with to safely get cars out of the way so traffic can continue to flow.”
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Delays are common, but a global pandemic and a hurricane weren’t in the blueprint for hiccups.
“It definitely slowed things down and then as we started to get closer to the end, you know, we had that generational hurricane come through inland with Helene,” said Collins. “It caused a lot of damage, and that slowed progress on this job for several weeks for the cleanup.”
But with the end in sight, crews have made the punch list and now they’re checking it twice.
“If there’s any outstanding signage, they would be finishing that,” said Collins. “Any other general cleanup, also just getting down a stand of grass, you know, this spring and summer, stuff like that that could cause a temporary lane closure but is generally outside the main travel lanes.”
And just like you, crews are ready to put this headache to rest.
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