Harford County’s Stafford Road Bridge rehabilitation project has been honored as the medium-sized project of the year by the County Engineers Association of Maryland.
The Stafford Road bridge over Deer Creek in Susquehanna State Park is a 226-foot-long steel beam bridge originally constructed in 1950. Prior to the rehabilitation project, the bridge was functionally obsolete and structurally deficient.
Because of its location in a state park, Maryland Department of Natural Resources limited the bridge closure and detour to the nine months between Labor Day 2022 and Memorial Day 2023. In addition to working successfully within these time constraints, Harford County Department of Public Works developed cost-effective and innovative solutions to several challenges. One solution was to use fiber-reinforced polymer wrapping around the concrete piers to protect them from abrasion caused by the constant flow of Deer Creek.
To keep the community informed during construction, Harford County DPW maintained a project website and posted frequent updates. The website was built using in-house GIS resources, and video taken with a county-owned drone was used to demonstrate progress. Signboards at the site and throughout the park displayed QR codes to make it easy for citizens to get updates from the website.
“I am proud of our team in the Harford County Department of Public Works for receiving this honor and for their creative and efficient approach to this rehabilitation project,” County Executive Bob Cassilly said. “Most importantly, the project will improve safety for everyone who uses the bridge.”
The project was completed, and the bridge reopened on May 17, 2023, with a wider deck to allow pedestrians and cyclists to share the road more safely with motorists.
