Key Bridge rebuild receives federal environmental approval

There are still structures to be demolished , designs to be drawn up and a bridge to be built. But the Francis Scott Key Bridge rebuild now has federal environmental approval, one of many steps before the replacement span will again stand above the Patapsco River.

All federally funded transportation projects must be analyzed for their environmental impacts, as required by the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969, and constructing a new bridge, for example, can require years of study. But as a replacement bridge, the new span will skip significant environmental analysis, enabling its completion more quickly than it would otherwise. Its current completion date is expected to be Oct. 2028.

The Maryland Transportation Authority, the bridge’s owner, said in a news release Tuesday that it has received NEPA approval and a “categorical exclusion” — meaning it will not need an in-depth environmental analysis — from the Federal Highway Administration.

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“The federal agency determined that because the replacement Key Bridge will be within the former bridge’s right-of-way and have the same capacity of four travel lanes, it is not anticipated to significantly impact community, natural or cultural resources,” the transportation authority said.

Maryland Secretary of Transportation Paul Wiedefeld called the approval a “major milestone” in a statement.

“This approval from the federal government formally gives MDTA the go ahead to move forward with plans to rebuild the Key Bridge,” he stated.

The approval was expected, given that the new bridge will be in the same location as the old one.

During a Senate hearing on July 10, Sen. Pete Ricketts, a Republican from Nebraska, asked FHWA Administrator Shailen Bhatt about environmental permitting, noting “it’s important that we get this done as quickly as possible.”

“What we will do is we will issue a categorical exclusion,” Bhatt said at the time, “because we’re replacing a bridge in essentially the same footprint as the preexisting one.”