MECHANICSVILLE, Md. – On August 4, 2020, the original Busy Corner Bridge on Busy Corner Road collapsed due to tropical storm Isaias.
For the past four months, Great Mills Trading Post along with Project Manager Willie Buckler, Inspector Steve Gass, and Engineers from Messick & Associates have been working to reopen the bridge.
According to James Gotch from the St. Mary’s County Government, the box culvert was delayed due to supply chain issues since it isn’t an off the shelf product. The box culverts are manufactured for each job, and some regions of the country were hit harder than our area and had placed much larger orders. Once the box culverts were received, the installation was quick. Permits were also required and obtained from MDE.
The total cost of the project was approximately $560,000.
The team is still awaiting the installation of the guardrail. Once completed, the road will reopen. They are hoping that the installation will happen within the next two weeks.
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It would have been better for our area if they had kept it closed. This was a waste of money and the intersection was a lot safer while it was closed.
There is a reason why they’ve reopened it. When you stopped at the intersection with the flashing light, it was imperative that you cleared that intersection quickly due to the cars coming down the hill from the left. Now, with the new road reopened, you have a lot more time and visibility to get onto or across route 5.
The speed limit is 30mph. There haven’t been any notable accidents in the area since the road was closed. We live next to the intersection. It’s been a blessing having the road closed.