Dec. 24 (UPI) — The $2 billion rebuilding of the Francis Scott Key Bridge is slated to start with preconstruction activities Jan. 7 in the Port of Baltimore.
The $2 billion for the bridge rebuilding project was included in the congressional funding bill that President Joe Biden signed into law Saturday.
“The people of Maryland are grateful that Congress has strongly supported helping us rebuild the Francis Scott Key Bridge expeditiously,” Maryland Gov. Wes Moore said in a statement Saturday.
“This action affirms the central importance of rebuilding the bridge not just to Maryland, but the nation,” Moore said. “This bipartisan agreement is a win for port workers, truckers, small businesses, service members and working families throughout Maryland and across America.”
The Maryland Transportation Authority awarded the bridge construction contract in August to the Kiewit Corp. of Omaha, Neb.
Kiewit engineers plan to build a bridge that is taller and longer than for former bridge that collapsed and killed six workers after being struck by a cargo vessel March 26.