Bridge repair work in Rehoboth to begin May 1

Two of the Cape Region’s most well-traveled bridges will be repaired during the summer season.

Delaware Department of Transportation will begin working on the Lewes-Rehoboth Canal Bridge in Rehoboth Beach and the Savannah Road drawbridge in Lewes Tuesday, May 1. DelDOT spokesman C.R. McLeod said electrical and mechanical components are outdated and will be modernized. McLeod said each bridge will also get a fresh coat of paint and improvements to sidewalks and curbs.

Work will last through the summer and into the off-season. McLeod said detours and closures will be limited to overnight hours - 8 p.m. to 5 a.m. - on both bridges. He said crews will be allowed to close one lane during the day for delivery of materials but the closure cannot last longer than an hour.

Mayor Paul Kuhns said he expects the project to slow traffic into town, but most of the work will take place at night and will be underneath the bridge.

The combined cost of both bridge projects is $7 million. According to DelDOT statistics used in public workshops on the project in July, the Rehoboth bridge has an average daily traffic total of 22,000 cars per day with a peak of 30,000 cars per day. The Lewes drawbridge has an average daily traffic of 10,000 cars per day.

According to DelDOT, each bridge is raised an average of 12 times per year. Rehoboth’s bridge is more than 30 years old, while the Lewes drawbridge is closer to 40 years old. While DelDOT officials say they are in good shape structurally, the bridges get stuck, usually when the steel swells on extremely hot days. The Rehoboth bridge was stuck for nearly 30 minutes in June when parts became misaligned, so the bridge could not go down.

DelDOT plans to do similar work on the Lewes-Rehoboth Canal Bridge on Route 1 leading to Forgotten Mile beginning in fall 2019.