An appeals court in Boston upheld an earlier decision to replace the Frank J. Wood Bridge that connects Brunswick and Topsham.
The bridge carries Route 201 over the Androscoggin River.
The more than 90-year-old bridge has deteriorated significantly in recent years, with the Maine Department of Transportation posting weight limits and banning all commercial vehicles from traveling across. This includes vehicles, such as firetrucks and school buses.
However, the group Friends of the Frank J. Wood Bridge along with the National Trust for Historic Preservation sued, claiming the bridge is a historic site.
A federal judge rejected the legal challenge looking to save the bridge, and the 1st U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the decision.
Reconstruction began in 2023, and all work is expected to finish by late 2026, though the new bridge is expected to open to traffic before then.
Designed to last for at least 100 years, the Department of Transportation says the new bridge will have sidewalks on both sides, including pedestrian viewing bump-outs, wider shoulders on both sides, parks on both ends, special railings, lighting and other design details, and unobstructed views of the natural and architectural features of the surrounding Pejepscot Falls site.
