Route 610 (Salem Church Road) in upper Gloucester County will be closed for approximately one week this month to allow state crews to install a new bridge.

The present bridge, which was built in 1964, has been rated “structurally deficient” by the Virginia Department of Transportation, according to VDOT spokesperson Kelly Hannon.

Crews were scheduled to close Salem Church Road at the bridge this Tuesday and, weather permitting, that road will re-open to traffic next Tuesday, July 18, she said.

Crews will remove the existing 16-foot long bridge, which has steel beams with a timber deck. Then, the new bridge will be erected, which Hannon said is a Glulam structure, a glued, laminated timber bridge engineered to carry modern vehicles’ weights.

After installation of the new, 16.5-foot long bridge, paving work will occur within several weeks, along with the installation of new guardrail.

When the new bridge passes final inspection, Hannon said the weight posting will ...