​(August 30, 2019) – The new MD 364 (Dividing Creek Road) bridge over Dividing Creek at the Somerset/Worcester county line is open to traffic. The Maryland Department of Transportation State Highway Administration (MDOT SHA) opened the bridge this morning, keeping its promise to completely replace the previous 86-year old structure in just 10 weeks and reopen MD 364 by Labor Day.

 

“We certainly want to thank the public for their patience,” said District Engineer Jay Meredith. “Our accelerated construction schedule was based on a full closure and long detour and we simply couldn’t have done this without tremendous cooperation from area residents and businesses.”

 

Work included removal of the old bridge and construction of a new 55-foot long prestressed concrete slab structure featuring 12-foot wide travel lanes and three-foot wide shoulders to accommodate bicycles. Crews from Marine Technologies of Baltimore began the $2.3 million project in mid-June, working seven days a week behind a steel “coffer dam” to build the new substructure with minimal impacts to stream flow. Precast concrete slabs were brought in to form the new bridge deck which includes a paved asphalt riding surface.

 

Completing the project by Labor Day was critical both for school transportation and area farmers who use MD 364 as a fall harvest route to grain facilities in Westover.

While MDOT SHA and its transportation partners work hard to maintain safe traffic mobility in work zones, each driver needs to actively modify his or her driving style to help prevent crashes. Stay alert and look for reduced speed limits, narrow driving lanes and highway workers. Slow down and don’t follow too closely. Work Zone Safety is in Your Hands. For a list of all major MDOT SHA projects, click on Road Ready, MDOT SHA's electronic construction brochure. For a look at real-time commute conditions, log onto https://chart.maryland.gov/.

 

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