WILMINGTON – As part of the preservation of the Cape Fear Memorial Bridge, the N.C. Department of Transportation will need to close all lanes of the bridge in approximately 10-minute intervals.
To extend the useful life of the bridge’s cable wires, which are a critical component, they will be cleaned, inspected and regreased with machinery.
While the eastbound lanes are closed, crews will perform this work on half of the wires. Beginning around 9 p.m. March 23, all lanes of the Wilmington bridge will close, so that the bridge can be lifted and brought back down, which takes about 10 minutes. The last operation will happen no later than 4 a.m. the following morning.
This will be done a total of eight times. Crews anticipate the work will take up to three nights and will continue March 25 and 26.
This lifting procedure is similar when the bridge rises for a large ship.
If drivers want to avoid a potential delay at the Cape Fear Memorial Bridge on these days, they should take the Isabel Holmes Bridge.
This work will be repeated on the westbound side in a couple of months.
For more details about the preservation of the Cape Fear Memorial Bridge, visit ncdot.gov/CFMBrehab.
For real-time travel information, visit DriveNC.gov or follow NCDOT on social media.