The Townsends Inlet Bridge connects Sea Isle City and Avalon.
The Townsends Inlet Bridge will be temporarily closed to traffic during overnight hours for most of January for construction of a new safety system to protect the 1930s-era span from boat collisions.
Traffic will not be allowed on the bridge from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m. Monday through Thursday nights from Jan. 5 to Jan. 26 while construction continues, the Cape May County Bridge Commission said.
During the closures, the contractor will be installing new bridge foundation pilings directly beneath the structure. The pilings form the primary framing for a new “fender system,” which is designed to protect the bridge from boat collisions and improve the long-term resilience of the span, the commission said.
The bridge will reopen to traffic during daylight hours.
The Townsends Inlet Bridge connects Sea Isle City and Avalon and is one of five toll bridges operated by the Cape May County Bridge Commission along the coast-hugging Ocean Drive from Ocean City to Cape May.
During the overnight closures, motorists traveling between Avalon and Sea Isle will be directed to use Avalon Boulevard or Sea Isle Boulevard to access Route 9. The detour route will be clearly marked with temporary roadway signage in advance of and along the detour, the commission said.
Motorists are encouraged to plan alternate travel routes, allow additional travel time and follow posted signage during the construction period.
“The Cape May County Bridge Commission appreciates the public’s patience and cooperation as this important infrastructure improvement project moves forward,” the agency said in a statement.
Kevin Lare, executive director of the bridge commission, noted that the agency is having its contractor do the construction work at night and during the off-season to minimize traffic disruptions.
The construction project involves installing a new $4.9 million fender system to protect the bridge from potential boat collisions and to safely guide marine traffic through the swift-running inlet that connects the bay with the ocean.
The safety feature will provide an extra layer of protection for the massive piers that support the bridge. Fenders are structures installed underneath the bridge to keep boats, barges and other marine vessels from slamming into the span and damaging it.
Lare said the project is expected to be completed by Memorial Day weekend 2026.
The Starfish charter boat was grounded in shallow water while undergoing repairs after hitting the Townsends Inlet Bridge in 2022.Underscoring the need for the safety system, the Townsends Inlet Bridge has a recent history of large boats striking it.
A 52-foot yacht slammed into the fenders at night and nearly sank in June 2023. The fenders prevented the yacht from causing even more damage to the main section of the bridge. There were no injuries reported in the incident. The boat was later salvaged.
In July 2022, another major accident occurred when the Starfish charter boat based in Sea Isle was pushed into the bridge by the inlet’s strong currents.
The collision left a hole in the Starfish’s bow. The large charter boat, which was carrying 22 passengers at the time, took on water and ran aground. All passengers were safely evacuated.
The old-fashioned Townsends Inlet drawbridge was built in 1939 as part of President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal public infrastructure projects to provide work during the Great Depression.
The county has launched a Local Concept Development study for the replacement of the antiquated bridge.
The construction of a new Townsends Inlet Bridge is estimated to cost between $65.7 million and $167.7 million and would take years to complete, according to a county transportation report released in 2020.
The concept study represents another preliminary step in what has been a multiyear planning process to build a new bridge to connect Sea Isle and Avalon.
Under a projected timeline, preliminary work such as completing the designs, engineering and obtaining the regulatory permits for a new bridge might take as long as six years. Construction could add another three years, according to the 2020 report.
