Work begins next week on a replacement for Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge, which collapsed when struck by a container ship in March.
Pre-construction work reportedly will begin Jan. 7. Demolition is expected to take place in the spring.
Federal funding for the entire project was included in the recently approved spending bill that included $100 billion for disaster relief. The project is expected to cost $2 billion and take four years to complete.
The bridge, which carriers Interstate 695 over the Patapsco River, collapsed in the early morning hours of March 26 when the container ship Dali lost power exiting the Port of Baltimore and struck one of the bridge';s supports. Six of eight construction workers performing maintenance on the bridge at the time of the collision died.
The bridge's collapse hindered shipping traffic into and out of the Port of Baltimore for several months. It also forced traffic onto detours, adding time to truckers' travels to and around the city. Before its collapse, the Francis Scott Key Bridge carried some 11 million vehicles a year.
The U.S. Justice Department filed a $101 million civil lawsuit against Grace Ocean Private Limited and Synergy Marine Private Limited, owners of the Dali, for the cost of clean up of the bridge collapse, which the company paid.
