Efforts to reconstruct the collapsed Francis Scott Key Bridge over the Patapsco River in Baltimore are speeding along, with the Federal Highway Administration issuing on July 23 an environmental approval for the project. Procurement is also underway, with the Maryland Transportation Authority recently releasing a request for proposals for an engineering consultant.

The federal agency issued the categorical exclusion classification and National Environmental Policy Act approval after finding the replacement bridge would likely not significantly impact the community, environment or other resources since it would be built in the former span’s footprint. 

Also like the original 1.7-mile through-truss bridge, the new one would have four travel lanes. 

“Securing this approval marks a major milestone in rebuilding the Key Bridge and reconnecting communities following the March 26 catastrophic collapse,” said Paul Wiedefeld, Maryland transportation secretary and state authority chair, in a statement. 

The original Key Bridge carried an average of 40,000 vehicles per day on Interstate 695. Its main spans collapsed after the container vessel M/V Dali lost power and struck one of its piers. Six people who had been doing maintenance work on the bridge at the time were killed. 

A unified command with the U.S. Coast Guard, Army Corps of Engineers and state agencies led the effort to clear wreckage and restore the federal shipping channel. The National Transportation Safety Board is investigating the incident. 

The Maryland authority issued a request for proposals at the end of May seeking design-build teams for the rebuild. Proposals were due last month, and officials say they will select a team this summer. While construction of the original bridge took about five years, the agency aims to finish the structure by the fall of 2028. Officials have estimated the cost at between $1.7 billion and $1.9 billion.  

Under an RFP issued July 19, the state seeks to award a $75-million general engineering consultant contract to assist with the rebuild effort. The consultant would provide cost and schedule tracking, project document management, coordination with environmental regulators, DBE contractor compliance monitoring and other services. It would also help manage the future design-build team.

The authority plans to hold a pre-proposal conference for interested engineering firms on July 26, 2:00 pm, via Microsoft Teams. Responses are due by Aug. 19. The RFP is available on the eMaryland Marketplace Advantage platform.