Maine Department of Transportation officials have announced the new Dresden-Richmond Bridge will be tall enough to accommodate the U.S. Coast Guard’s largest icebreaking ship, the 140-foot Thunder Bay.
Bridge Project Manager Nate Benoit said the decision was made after consultations with the Coast Guard.
According to Benoit, the Coast Guard needed to guarantee they could do icebreaking missions further up the Kennebec River, a requirement mandated by Congress.
While the Coast Guard has other icebreakers for the region, some may be taken out of service soon, increasing the importance of Thunder Bay.
According to Benoit, the Coast Guard has three 65-foot ships – the Shackle, Tackle, and Bridle – all of which are nearing or have already exceeded their 50-year service life.
To accommodate the Thunder Bay the new Richmond-Dresden Bridge must be built taller than 75 feet, the ship’s clearance level. Such specifications would make the bridge similar in size to the Bath Bridge linking the towns of Bath and Woolwich.
Maine DOT will hold a public hearing March 15 at 6 p.m. in Dresden’s Pownalborough Hall. Benoit said the department will reveal the plans and profile of the bridge and its access road at this meeting.