Rebuilding Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge is going to cost a lot more, and take a lot longer, than originally hoped.
The Maryland Transportation Authority said Monday its board is updating its cost estimate range for the new bridge as $4.3-$5.2 billion — well over double the state’s initial estimate of around $2 billion.
In a news release, the agency said it now anticipates the bridge will open to traffic in late 2030, rather than the initial projection of 2028.
The initial estimates were made less than two weeks after a container ship struck the Francis Scott Key Bridge in March 2024, causing the structure to plummet into the Patapsco River and killing six construction workers who were on the bridge.
“A preliminary estimate was needed to request federal emergency relief funding for immediate cleanup and recovery,” MDTA Executive Director Bruce Gartner said in a news release. “Typically, a cost estimate would not be provided on a project of this size until much later in the design process.”
Since that initial estimate, material costs have increased dramatically, according to the agency. Advanced design of the bridge and preconstruction activities gave the Maryland Transportation Authority more data to inform its updated projection.
Construction company Kiewit is leading the rebuild project.
Also contributing to the increased cost are efforts to prevent a repeat of March 26, 2024.
“The updated cost range and schedule are directly correlated to increased material costs and to a robust pier protection system designed to protect the new Key Bridge and reduce the likelihood of a future ship strike to the bridge’s foundational piers,” Acting Transportation Secretary and MDTA Chair Samantha Biddle said.
The protective fenders planned for the new bridge are larger than a football field, which was not accounted for in the preliminary estimate, according to the agency.
“Just as families across the country are dealing with the reality of increased costs, so is Maryland. Trade policies out of Washington, D.C. have raised prices on everything — including essential materials we need in order to rebuild the Francis Scott Key Bridge. Still, despite this new economic reality, our resolve is unwavering,” Gov. Wes Moore said in a statement Monday.
In its news release, the transportation authority pointed to the American Relief Act, which authorized more than $8 billion for the Emergency Relief Program and committed to fully funding the Key Bridge replacement.
President Donald Trump has signaled he may revisit that commitment, which was made under former President Joe Biden’s administration.
Moore said state officials will continue working with the Trump administration to “find ways to reduce costs and rebuild faster.”
Efforts in court to win damages from the owner and manager of the container ship that brought down the bridge are ongoing and could last years. Those funds would go toward the bridge’s reconstruction, the transportation authority said.
“We continue to move forward in our efforts to pursue litigation against those responsible, so taxpayers aren’t on the hook,” Moore said.
