Longfellow Bridge Reconstruction to Start in Spring

The Longfellow Bridge, a historic link between Cambridge and Boston, will begin a rehabilitation this spring, and the state department of transportation released a video outlining just how this will get done.

The bridge will be rebuilt in six phases, shown in this video published by the Massachusetts Department of Transportation. The work will disrupt Red Line service for 25 weekends and eliminate northbound traffic, according to the Boston Globe. 

The video – which MassDOT has set to some nice acoustic guitar strumming – breaks down each phase of the bridge repair in great detail.

Overall, the historical features will remain intact, and the structural deficiencies will be updated and brought to modern standards.

“In particular, the structural steel elements supporting the bridge deck have deteriorated and require upgrading, and the abutments will have to be modified slightly to allow the sidewalk approaches to meet Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) accessibility guidelines,” according to a Feb. 27 MassDOT press release.

The Longfellow Bridge runs along Main Street in Cambridge and connects Kendall Square with Boston’s Beacon Hill. The bridge, which opened in 1906, transports vehicles, pedestrians, bicycles as well as the MBTA Red Line.

The Longfellow Bridge rehabilitation is part of Gov. Deval Patrick and MassDOT's Accelerated Bridge Program, which as of Jan. 1 the ABP Program has completed 121 bridge projects, with another 48 bridge projects currently in construction.