On March 23, 1977, the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore was opened for vehicular traffic.
On March 26, 2024, just over 47 years later, a tragedy of epic proportions occurred when parts of the Key Bridge collapsed after it was struck by a container ship leaving the Port of Baltimore.
The collapse resulted in the death of eight workers who were repairing the bridge’s roadway and also sent severe shock waves through local, state, and national economies.
The collapse may have been prevented if the Maryland Transportation Authority (MDTA), owner and operator of the bridge, had taken steps to reinforce the bridge to help minimize or prevent the impact of a ship collision.
When asked why that was not done, one MDTA civil engineer said candidly that they never thought about a ship hitting the bridge.
But it did happen, and the aftershocks are still being felt two years later.
Two weeks after the collapse, MDTA announced their expectation that the bridge would be rebuilt by late 2028 and estimated the cost of the rebuild would be between $1.7 billion and $1.9 billion.
MDTA followed up with an announcement that they had engaged The Kiewit Corporation for phase one of the rebuild, a phase that included engineering and design studies.
Kiewit is one of the largest construction and engineering organizations in North America.
Engineering News-Record magazine has recognized Kiewit for its commitment to safety and innovation in construction practices. The publication has also noted Kiewit’s strong reputation for delivering projects on time and within budget.
Kiewit is no stranger to Baltimore or the region.
Between 1980 and 1985, Kiewit built the Fort McHenry Tunnel in Baltimore Harbor. Kiewit is currently part of the team constructing the 11.5-mile, six-station Phase II of Washington Metro’s Silver Line in Virginia.
The phase one engagement on the Key Bridge started off well.
MDTA’s executive director said the Key Bridge rebuild achieved 70 percent design in 14 months compared to other projects that have averaged seven years, while also starting reconstruction.
Maryland’s transportation secretary said the state had been very pleased with the quality and timeliness of Kiewit’s work.
Then the wheels came off.
On April 28, 2026, MDTA informed Kiewit that they would not be retained for the next phases of the Key Bridge rebuild. MDTA said Kiewit’s proposed $9 billion bridge replacement budget exceeded the state’s independent cost estimates.
Instead, MDTA will search for new contractors to complete the next three phases of reconstruction:
- demolition of remaining bridge structures,
- construction of two highway approaches,
- and construction of the bridge itself, including protection against a future ship strike.
MDTA officials concluded that rebuilding with multiple contractors would allow for greater competition and speed up the rebuilding process.
Ironically, despite saying four new contractors will accelerate the rebuild, MDTA also retained the projected completion date of late 2030 — already two years later than the original target date of 2028.
There was no mention that changing contractors would guarantee avoiding future cost overruns or delays.
Nor was there any mention of whether new contractors might encounter the same issues that led a respected bridge builder like Kiewit — a company in business continuously for 142 years — to submit a $9 billion estimate.
MDTA apparently either forgot or chose to ignore how their own initial rebuild estimate more than doubled from between $1.7 billion and $1.9 billion to between $4.3 billion and $5.2 billion.
MDTA also apparently either forgot or chose to ignore observations from the Federal Highway Administration included in an MDTA press release last November.
That observation stated that highway construction costs have increased approximately 72 percent in the last five years, creating an uncertain construction and bonding market nationwide. Inflation continues to affect material costs, and contractors price that risk into their bids. The cost of raw materials and labor remains constantly in flux. When pricing construction jobs, uncertainty equates to risk, which impacts cost.
Historically, projected cost estimates and completion dates are best guesses of what might happen. Far too often, they become little more than starting points for determining the scale of future cost overruns and delays.
So far, the Key Bridge rebuild is no exception.
Only one thing is certain about this project: it will be completed someday.
When it is, it can be added to the ever-growing list of large-scale government-funded public works projects completed with numerous rounds of cost overruns and schedule delays — accompanied by overpromising and underdelivering.
