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Work will soon begin on a replacement for the Lindsay C. Warren Bridge on U.S. 64 in Tyrrell and Dare counties over the Alligator River, under a contract approved Wednesday, Jan. 8, 2025 by the N.C. Board of Transportation.

The $450 million contract, awarded to Skanska USA, will replace the 65-year-old swing-span bridge with a modern, two-lane fixed-span bridge just north of the current one, reported a media release from NCDOT.

Funding is aided by a $110 million grant from the Federal Highway Administration under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law passed in 2021.

Workers from Skanska will​ begin driving bridge pilings in the next several weeks – weather permitting – and begin other activities such as clearing soon thereafter. Under terms of the contract, the new bridge will open to traffic in the fall of 2029, with demolition of the current bridge to begin in the spring of 2030.

The current bridge, completed in 1960, is the main route to access the Outer Banks from the west, and a critical hurricane evacuation route. The aging swing span is maintained regularly but is prone to occasional mechanical failures which force motorists onto a 99-mile detour.

The new bridge will also improve river traffic, as more than 4,000 boats pass through the swing span each year, noted the release.

Skanska in the U.S. is headquartered in New York City with 28 offices around the country. Skanska USA has more than 6,500 employees in the U.S. and more than 27,000 globally.

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