Truck Detour In Place On Putnam Bridge

GLASTONBURY, CT — Drivers of vehicles weighing more than 20 tons are being directed away from the Putnam Memorial Bridge between Wethersfield and Glastonbury under a Connecticut Department of Transportation detour.

The bridge, also identified by CTDOT as Bridge No. 00417, spans the Connecticut River and is now subject to a posted truck detour tied to an existing weight restriction.

In a notice posted May 11, CTDOT announced a truck detour for the Putnam Memorial Bridge in Wethersfield and Glastonbury. According to the agency, the detour is associated with the previously imposed 20-ton weight restriction and will remain in effect until no later than Nov. 3, 2028.

Under the detour plan, vehicles in excess of 20 tons are being told to find other routes or use posted truck detour signs along Route 3, Interstate 91 and Route 2. The detour affects travel through Wethersfield, Hartford, East Hartford and Glastonbury, according to CTDOT.

Motorists and trucking companies that use the river crossing between Wethersfield and Glastonbury will need to plan around the restriction until the posted end date or any future update from CTDOT. For now, the agency's guidance is for overweight vehicles to avoid the bridge and use the assigned detour route.

The rehabilitation of the Putnam Memorial Bridge began March 16.

The purpose of the project is to "increase the load rating factor for all legal, permit, and emergency vehicles through strengthening and bracing of the existing structural steel," according to the DOT.

The project also includes deck patching and "new wearing surface installation," drainage repairs, inspection catwalk removal, substructure concrete repairs and full painting of the bridge, according to the DOT.