Lane closures expected as Bonner Bridge progresses …WITH VIDEO 

Dare County has released another video update on the progress of the construction of the Bonner Bridge replacement and of the interim bridge over the Pea Island Inlet — or Irene’s Inlet — and the message to travelers is to expect land closures and some delays.

Despite a brief break on bridge construction operations because of Tropical Storm Hermine, the Bonner Bridge replacement project continues to progress at full steam, with the highest number of workers to date present on-site.

Drivers in the area should expect daytime closures of Highway 12 on Monday through Friday. One lane will remain open during these lane closures. However, motorists should allow for extra travel time in case of delays.

Occasional nighttime road closures of up to 30 minutes are also possible during the delivery of construction materials. NCDOT will provide advanced notice of these road closures via online and social media resources, as well as its travel management site, www.ncdot.gov/traffictravel/.

You can check out the NCDOT Highway 12 Facebook page as well for more information.  

At the northern end of the Bonner Bridge, crews are steadily making their way south, having driven in the structure’s northernmost pilings and having started the process of pouring in concrete.

In the middle of the inlet, the pilings that will eventually serve as the supports for the two footings located in the center of the navigation span have been successfully installed.

As crews prepare these sites for the pouring of the concrete footers, water-based piling installation continues on both a northward and southward course.

On the Pea Island portion of the project, the southernmost pilings of the bridge continue to be installed and driven in, as additional crews construct the second formwork that will be eventually moved and used in the pouring of the concrete footers at the bridge’s center.

Further south at the Pea Island Interim Bridge that crosses Irene’s Inlet, after having spanned the breach, piling driving has expanded outside the limits of the existing bridge, where the new structure will meet the roadway.

Additionally, over the course of the next month, crews plan to remove the previous detours and unused roadway from both the north and south sides of the interim bridge site.  

NCDOT reminds both motorists and mariners to stay alert and use caution when navigating through the site.  Updates and notifications on any maritime-related delays can be found via the U.S. Coast Guard’s local notice to mariners, broadcast notice to mariners, and marine safety information bulletins.