FREDERICKSBURG – Construction to replace a bridge on Route 695 (Windmill Point Road) over Oyster Creek in Lancaster County is scheduled to begin on Monday, July 27.
Travelers can expect brief delays and temporary changes in the work zone during construction. Changes will include a temporary speed limit, a vehicle width restriction, and traffic pattern changes.
The project is scheduled to be complete in May 2027.
After mobilizing in late July, crews will first install a temporary single-lane bridge parallel to the existing bridge. Traffic will cross the temporary bridge for the remainder of the project. A temporary traffic signal will control one-way, alternating traffic through the work zone. Vehicles of all legal weights, up to 45 tons, can cross the temporary bridge during construction. The vehicle width restriction on the temporary bridge will be 13 feet, 7 inches.
Once the temporary bridge is installed and open to traffic, the posted speed limit will be 25 mph in the work zone.
The eastern intersection of Route 656 (Oyster Creek Drive) with Windmill Point Road will close when construction begins, due to its proximity to the work zone, and will remain closed through May 2027. Travelers seeking Oyster Creek Drive should use the western intersection with Windmill Point Road during the project.
Marine traffic will be prohibited from passing underneath the bridge during construction. Safety fencing will be installed to prevent small watercraft from passing underneath the temporary bridge and the existing bridge that will be demolished and rebuilt. When the new bridge opens in May 2027, this safety fencing will be removed and marine traffic can again pass below the bridge.
The existing bridge was built in 1930 and has two 9-foot-wide travel lanes with minimal shoulders. It is also posted with a vehicle weight limit of 25 tons for vehicles with 4-5 axles, 26 tons for emergency vehicles, 27 tons for vehicles with 2-3 axles, 29 tons for vehicles with 6 or more axles, and 40 tons for tractor-trailers with 3 or more axles. The replacement bridge will be able to carry vehicles of all legal weights.
The new bridge will continue to have two travel lanes, but each lane will be 11 feet wide, with 4-foot-wide shoulders on each side. The bridge rail will be 42 inches high.
An average of 500 vehicles a day cross Oyster Creek on Windmill Point Road.
The $10.3 million project is being funded through Virginia’s State of Good Repair program.
The project contractor is Kokosing Construction Company, Inc.
