The Aroostook River Bridge in Caribou, which serves as the only connection point to the eastern side of the city for almost 20 miles, will no longer have to fully close as it undergoes major repairs in 2027.
In a message sent to the Aroostook Emergency Management Agency and shared with the Bangor Daily News Monday, the Maine Department of Transportation said it would be possible to keep open a 12-foot lane of alternating traffic as crews replace the bridge deck.
First responders, municipal officials and residents in Caribou, Fort Fairfield and surrounding towns have for months questioned how they would deal with the closure, which would have added as much as an hour to some commutes, delayed emergency services and cost Caribou upwards of $400,000, it estimated.
In 23 pages of responses, nearly all complaints, submitted to the DOT’s virtual public meeting on the project, locals slammed the bridge closure as “crazy,” “unacceptable” and “devastating.”
The DOT previously said, based on preliminary engineering, that completing the construction in stages to keep a lane open was not feasible because of how the bridge was built, meaning it would have to be fully closed for at least five months.
However, a finite element structural analysis recently completed by a design consultant for the project proved otherwise, the department said.
During the construction process, which is expected to run from late 2026 through most of 2027, there still may be short closures of 10-15 minutes at certain points, the department said in the message, but “the detour around using other roads down to Fort Fairfield to cross the river will not be necessary.”
It’s unclear if this change will extend the overall construction timeline. A spokesperson for the DOT did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The department is also exploring ways to mitigate traffic backing up at the bridge, including restriping lanes on Route 1 and modifying traffic light timing at intersections.
The DOT estimates the project will cost $17 million, funded out of the department’s latest work plan.
It plans to put it out to bid on Sept. 30, according to the department’s latest advertisement schedule report.
