New Bedford-Fairhaven Bridge Stuck Again This Week

UPDATE: The bridge reopened just after 4 p.m.

NEW BEDFORD (WBSM) — For the second time this week, the New Bedford-Fairhaven Bridge is closed to vehicle traffic.

The Massachusetts Department of Transportation announced just before 1 p.m. today that the Route 6 swing bridge that connects New Bedford and Fairhaven is “currently closed due to a mechanical issue” and that “this closure is expected to remain in place for several hours.”

This past Monday, March 10, the bridge was closed for about six hours, also due to a “mechanical issue.” That closure began at around 1:30 p.m. and remained in place until just after 7 p.m.

READ MORE: New Bedford-Fairhaven Bridge Closed to Vehicle Traffic

It is recommended that drivers who normally use the bridge seek an alternate route and expect delays. Ongoing construction on Interstate 195 at the Route 18 interchange has also caused additional closures and traffic delays on nearby surface streets.

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Just a short time before the bridge was closed down Wednesday, New Bedford Mayor Jon Mitchell was making his weekly appearance on WBSM and discussed Monday's bridge closure.

“It’s the same old story. We’ve got an antiquated bridge, that the state itself in its study said it is functionally obsolete,” Mitchell said. “People shouldn’t be surprised by this. It’s an old mechanism that turns the swing bridge, and it breaks down far too often. It’s an inconvenience for people and the state needs to move faster (on replacing it).”

For well over a year, the plan to replace the bridge, which is more than 120 years old, has been stuck in the design phase despite expectations that the work would begin in 2027. Mitchell said we on the SouthCoast need to press the Commonwealth harder to get the project moving forward.

READ MORE: New Bedford-Fairhaven Bridge Was Once a Toll Bridge

Updates on the bridge closure will be posted on the Mass511 mobile app or at Mass511.com. You can also follow @MassDOT on X for updates.