FENWICK ISLAND, Del. – The Delaware Department of Transportation is requesting public insight for its Rt. 54 Bridge Replacement Project.
DelDOT held a public workshop Friday at the Roxanna Fire Hall for community comments and questions, discussing construction sequencing, scheduling and proposed bridge aesthetics. The department will continue to accept public comments through an online form until Thursday.
Neighbor Jeff Beckwich frequently sails underneath the bridge -- and says it's simply become an eyesore, and a possible safety hazard.
“I was just underneath it the other day, and it’s falling apart. That bridge, by all means, needs to be fixed.”
Construction on the bridge update is slated to begin in October 2024 and end in summer of 2027, to be completed in three stages. DelDOT says it will maintain two lanes of traffic with periodic single-lane closures throughout the construction process.
The updated structure will have a center lane to accommodate emergency vehicles and potential evacuations, pedestrian crosswalks, plus wider sidewalks and bike lanes.
One neighbor, Ben Frock, says the backup in the summer can delay his trips by over 30 minutes -- and just wants to see construction done as quick, and seamless, as possible.
The project will also update some surrounding intersections and roadways, connecting a ramp to Van Buren Avenue and connecting Monroe and Bennett Avenues to Rt. 54 in a single intersection.
DelDOT seeks community opinions on remaining design elements such as sidewalk and retaining wall patterns, lighting and architectural theme.
The public workshop comment form can be found at the following link and electronically returned to DelDOT by Thursday: https://fenwickisland.delaware.gov/files/2023/08/public.ejs_.pdf
