HOPE MILLS – The N.C. Department of Transportation on Friday closed Interstate 95 Business South at the N.C. 59 exit outside Fayetteville after a vehicle struck and damaged the old bridge.
The driver of a low-boy truck hauling an excavator on 95 Business on Friday afternoon damaged the steel beams and pieces of concrete of the old bridge, which was closed in January when N.C. 59 traffic was shifted onto the new bridge built alongside of it. Construction crews had been using the old bridge.
The new bridge, which is about two feet higher than the old bridge, was not struck by the low-boy truck.
Departmental bridge inspectors closed the southbound lanes going under the old bridge for safety.
Motorists leaving 95 Business South have two option when exiting at N.C. 59. They can turn left onto N.C. 59, go over the new bridge and get on I-95 South. (The interstate and 95 Business split near N.C. 59.)
Or, they can turn right onto N.C. 59, then left onto Parkton Road to reach U.S. 301 or the Parkton area.
A more thorough inspection of the damage will be done next week. The old bridge is scheduled to be demolished and removed in about a month.