Fredericksburg Leader

Caroline County issued the following announcement on March 4

Route 652 (Cool Water Drive) in Caroline County was closed to through traffic today at the bridge over Polecat Creek, and will remain closed for a bridge replacement project. 

A routine, scheduled bridge inspection identified significant deterioration in key bridge elements, and the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) closed the bridge to through traffic for motorist safety.

Motorists should follow signs posted along the recommended detour route: 

• Route 1 
• Route 207 (Rogers Clark Boulevard) 

The detour route is 5 miles long. Message boards have been placed along Route 1 and Route 207 to alert travelers that Cool Water Drive is closed at Polecat Creek, and to follow the detour. 

Preliminary engineering and design work was underway on a project to replace this bridge, which is posted with a 4-ton vehicle weight restriction, and had previously been classified as structurally deficient. 

The project schedule will be accelerated due to the bridge closure. Replacement of the bridge over Polecat Creek will now be advertised for construction in summer 2022. The new bridge is estimated to open to traffic in September 2023. 

Cool Water Drive carries an average of 450 vehicles a day, according to a VDOT traffic count. 

Original source can be found here.