Maryland is going back to the market for the hardest part of the Key Bridge rebuild. The state’s transportation authority is reopening procurement for the Francis Scott Key Bridge main span, a job it now pegs at $3.5 billion to $4 billion, after off-ramping Kiewit earlier this year over cost estimates it wouldn’t accept.
What’s up for bid
MDTA split the replacement into four packages worth a combined $4 billion-plus: demolition, north and south approaches, and the main span. The main span is the prize, a 3,365-foot cable-stayed bridge with a 1,665-foot main channel span and 230 feet of clearance for ships. It’s structured as a progressive design-build, and an RFQ is expected this summer, with construction targeted to start in 2027. Public agencies are leaning on that progressive delivery model to keep complex jobs moving.
The Kiewit split
Kiewit stays on through year-end 2026 to finish foundation piles, trestle work, and design, but Maryland decided its Phase 2 price was too high and will seek a new team. As Construction Dive reported, officials are holding to a roughly $5.2 billion total price for the reconstruction.
Rebuilding a bridge that collapsed in seconds is a national test case for how fast a megaproject can move under scrutiny. The main-span award will show whether the market meets Maryland’s number.