Delay in approval of a federal loan may force Maryland to revise its funding strategy for a new Potomac River crossing that has been under construction for more than a year.
A recent project briefing for the Maryland Transportation Authority’s (MDTA) board of directors noted that the U.S. Dept. of Transportation had yet to approve a $200- million TIFIA loan for the Nice/Middleton Bridge project, a new 1.9-mile four-lane tolled structure that will replace a 70-year-old, two-lane bridge connecting southern Maryland with King George County, Va. In recent years, the crossing has seen a sharp uptick in traffic as an alternative to the crowded Interstate 95 corridor through northern Virginia and metropolitan Washington, D.C.