A recent article had a bridge between Waterville and Winslow taking five years to build (“Ticonic Bridge closes Monday to all traffic for 6 months,” Jan. 3). Admitting that the bridge being built is to replace an older bridge, that is, it is not a wide open construction area that would allow for a shorter project time.

I decided to check on how long it had taken to build other brand new bridges and a dam: Golden Gate, four years and three months; Hoover Dam, five years; George Washington Bridge, four years and one month; Boston’s Tobin/Mystic River Bridge, one year and 11 months; and Mackinaw Bridge, from the lower to upper peninsulas of Michigan, three years and six months.

I wonder how much time it would take to build the Waterville/Winslow Bridge if it weren’t for the need to keep parts of it open? Could they shut the existing bridge down, remove it, and reduce the time needed to replace it from say five years to just two or three years? That might be a much better alternative … or not.

Dan Dwyer
Scarborough