FREDERICKSBURG, Va. – Starting in May, travelers will notice additional maintenance work underway to improve the condition of the original Interstate 95 northbound bridge over the Rappahannock River, which connects the City of Fredericksburg and Stafford County. 

The 60-year-old northbound bridge is undergoing a $4 million rehabilitation project. Crews will repair bridge beams, piers and abutments, and resurface the concrete bridge deck that vehicles drive on. 

Northbound interstate traffic has been crossing the Rappahannock River on a new, parallel bridge since Dec. 2022. Traffic was shifted to facilitate construction of the I-95 Northbound Rappahannock River Crossing project. 

Since the bridge closed, crews with project contractor Martins Construction Corporation have been working above and below the bridge to identify areas to repair, and building platforms that will let crews work beneath the bridge. This month, travelers will observe crews beginning to perform maintenance work. Repairs are scheduled to be complete by Dec. 1, 2023. Accomplishing this maintenance work while the bridge is closed will reduce the need for lane closures once the bridge has reopened. 

The I-95 Northbound Rappahannock River Crossing project is a separate $132 million project building an additional three northbound travel lanes between exit 130 (Route 3) in Fredericksburg and exit 133 (Route 17) in Stafford, and an auxiliary fourth travel lane from exit 133 to exit 136 (Centreport Parkway). All six I-95 northbound lanes across the Rappahannock River are anticipated to open as part of the River Crossing in spring 2024. 

For more information on this bridge maintenance work, please visit the online project page on www.VirginiaDOT.org.

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VDOT’s 14-county Fredericksburg District includes the counties of Caroline, King George, Spotsylvania and Stafford in the Fredericksburg area; Northumberland, Richmond, Lancaster and Westmoreland counties in the Northern Neck; Essex, Gloucester, King & Queen, King William, Mathews and Middlesex counties in the Middle Peninsula.