Fore River Bridge
The Fore River Bridge carries Route 3A over the Fore River between Quincy and Weymouth. The new bridge will be the third movable bridge at this location, the first being a swing bridge constructed in the early 20th century. The 1902 swing bridge was replaced by a bascule bridge in 1936 when it was determined that the earlier bridge presented a hazard to navigation of the river. In the late 1990’s the 1936 bridge was found to be badly deteriorated and in 2002, traffic was directed off it and onto the current temporary bridge. In 2004, after appropriate historical documentation under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, the 1936 span was demolished. Though the temporary bridge is safe today and regularly inspected by MassDOT, it is rapidly reaching the end of its useful life and must be replaced. The new permanent vertical lift bridge will cost approximately $244 million to build and will carry the 32,000 vehicles that use the 3A corridor for at least 75 years to come.
