Lane Closures Necessary for Chatham Bridge Inspection

The Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) will close a single lane of eastbound and westbound Route 3 (Kings Highway) at the Chatham Bridge on Thursday, April 17 and Friday, April 18 for an emergency bridge inspection, following a recent overweight truck crossing the bridge. 

Motorists may encounter brief travel delays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Thursday and Friday.

VDOT is making arrangements to bring a snooper truck to the site. This equipment has an extended arm that can swing over the bridge rail and below the span, positioning personnel in a bucket to inspect the bridge.

On Saturday, April 12, a truck weighing 81.6 tons crossed the Chatham Bridge. The legal load limit for state-maintained structures is 27 tons for a single-unit truck, and 40 tons for tractor-trailers.

“VDOT’s structural and bridge engineers performed a visual inspection of the bridge immediately after the overweight truck crossing, while the bridge was closed to traffic,” said VDOT’s Fredericksburg District Structure and Bridge Engineer Annette Adams, P.E. “A full, follow-up inspection is required as a precaution to check for additional damage.”

The Chatham Bridge crosses the Rappahannock River, and connects Stafford County and the City of Fredericksburg.

Real-time listings of road closures in Virginia are available on VDOT’s 24-hour traffic and travel information website,www.511Virginia.org. Motorists can also access 511Virginia by calling 511 from any telephone in Virginia, or downloading a free 511Virginia mobile app.