RALEIGH - The N.C. Department
of Transportation is giving Duke employees and students another reason to
celebrate this week. By 5 p.m. on Thursday, it will open the new Main Street
bridge over Campus Drive between Buchanan Boulevard and Swift Avenue, the main
link between Duke's East and West campuses.
Work has been under way since mid-May to replace the 63-year-old bridge.
In its place is a structure that meets modern design standards, and provides
safer bike and pedestrian access, with bike lanes in each direction and 10-foot
sidewalks. It also has a higher clearance over Campus Drive. The opening will
free motorists from being forced to go onto the Durham Freeway as part of the
detour routes. About 12,600 vehicles a day use this stretch of Main Street.
The bridge replacement is part of a series of improvements made along
more than a mile of Main Street, including resurfacing and the addition of bike
lanes.
While the bridge will be open, work in the area will continue as a
contractor for Duke is rebuilding the stone wall along Main Street.
>