River Traffic To Be Closed On Piscataqua Near Bridge Project

Maine Public | By Associated Press

Published October 4, 2017 at 6:22 AM EDT

PORTSMOUTH, N.H. - The U.S. Coast Guard says the Piscataqua River near a bridge under construction connecting New Hampshire and Maine will be closed to all marine traffic for a 10-day period, starting Oct. 17.

The Coast Guard says the closure will allow the Maine Department of Transportation and a construction firm to install a new lift span for the Sarah Mildred Long Bridge. It says the closure is necessary to provide for the safety of all waterway users and construction workers.

The river will be closed to marine traffic starting 6 a.m. on Oct. 17, through about 6 a.m. on Oct. 27.

The bridge connected Portsmouth, New Hampshire, to Kittery, Maine via the U.S. Route 1 Bypass before it malfunctioned last year. The nearly $175 million renovation project is scheduled to be complete June 2018.