Rockland Street Bridge Looking at December Re-Opening
Bridge has been closed since January, was expected to re-open in September.
After closing to drivers earlier this year, the Rockland Street bridge may soon be passable again.
The bridge was initially expected to re-open in September. The Massachusetts Department of Transportation tells the Swellesley Report that the bridge is expected to re-open by the end of the year.
At the Nov. 19 Board of Selectmen meeting, officials said during a traffic study report, that the goal is to re-open the bridge by mid-December. The study aims to streamline traffic lights along Washington and Linden Streets, and will re-examine the Rockland Street intersection after the bridge is open once again.
MassDot announced in May that the cost would increase, in part due to outdated information about the bridge abutments. Bridge demolition began in July, after the Wellesley Police Department issued a reminder to the public in January announcing that the Rockland Street Bridge will permanently close, until construction was completed sometime "sometime later this year."
Despite the closure, one motorist still tried to take the bridge in late February.
Also at the site, a Gas Main was struck, which caused a road closing for part of August 31.
Ma Mi
5:26 pm on Sunday, December 16, 2012
It's now open for pedestrian!