Traffic could move onto the new bridge connecting E.W. Haining Road and North Washington Street within two weeks if the pace of construction continues, county officials said.

County Engineer John McKee told Warren County supervisors that the physical work to replace the old bridge and build the new, four-lane structure is “a little over halfway finished.”

The contract with Key LLC was let in March 2009 to build a bridge capable of handling more and heavier trucks. The $6.8 million replacement is funded with a Katrina-related disaster recovery grant.

Crews will dismantle the current bridge, which dates to the late 1950s, once traffic is rerouted. 

Besides construction, grant funds have been drawn upon to allow access over rail lines and have the site inspected by Kansas City Southern Railway.

A separate plan to connect U.S. 61 North to the port’s lone access point is expected to require right of way talks with landowners for two more years, according to the most recent four-year list for road projects kept by the Mississippi Department of Transportation.

Among other road and bridge project updates for the county board Monday:

• Public maintenance of roads in Mill Creek subdivision, which supervisors voted unanimously to accept.

An inspection deemed conditions on Mill Creek Drive, Millwood Circle and Grinders Place in line with county specifications, McKee said. The neighborhood off Lee Road has grown steadily since it was first planned more than a decade ago.

• A Katrina grant-funded endeavor to clear city bayous of debris, which McKee said is now focused on Stouts Bayou with survey and design under way.

• Opening of a new bridge on Mallet Road, expected within three weeks.

• A new bridge on Rawhide Road, which is just 13 percent done, is delayed due to right of way negotiations with landowners.

Contact Danny Barrett Jr. at dbarrett@vicksburgpost.com