A three-month bridge replacement project – slated to start June 28 – is expected to cause massive delays along South Middlebush Road and surrounding roads. Come mid-September, according to the plan, the $745,000 project will result in a brand-new, wider bridge, according to documents on file with the Somerset County Public Works Department. During the construction, South Middlebush Road will be closed between Jacques and Skillmans lanes. North-South traffic will be detoured to Route 27 using Skillmans and Cortelyous lanes and Claremont Road off of South Middlebush, and via Amwell Road and Veronica Avenue. The work is needed because the 400-foot long span over the Six Mile Run has been declared "functionally obsolete" and has been determined to have substandard railings and guardrails, according to the county documents. The bridge's embankments are eroding, and its supporting stone walls are becoming loose and separated, according to the project summary sheet. The 36-year-old bridge, the abutments for which were built before 1918, in 1918 and in 1981, suffered more damage after a motor vehicle accident in 2016. An average 15,500 vehicles cross the bridge daily, according to a 2013 traffic analysis. When it's finished, the new bridge will be six feet wider at 30 feet from side to side but will still hold two lanes. The bridge's width will be tapered at either end to match the road. Local access will be maintained during the construction period, which is expected to be finished by the time school starts in September.
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