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JUST IN: GDOT says Hwy. 213 bridge to open to traffic Friday night
New Hwy. 213 bridge
The long-awaited new County Hwy. 213 bridge over West Bear Creek west of Mansfield awaits final touches this week before opening to traffic Friday night, Oct. 1, a GDOT spokesman said. - photo by Georgia Department of Transportation

MANSFIELD, Ga. — A new County Hwy. 213 bridge in east Newton County will be open to traffic by Friday evening, a GDOT spokesperson said. 

Crews were to finish cleaning the road surface Thursday to have it ready for striping Friday, said spokesperson Kyle Collins of GDOT.

The $1.27 million project is replacing an outdated structure on Hwy. 213 crossing West Bear Creek 2.5 miles west of Mansfield near Dobbs Road. 

Workers closed the old bridge in March and began detouring Hwy. 213 traffic to the north along Dixie and Elks Club roads.

Opening of the bridge comes after GDOT began assessing a daily charge on prime contractor Williams Contracting Company LLC for missing a July 20 deadline listed in a contract for completion.

The project is part of the GDOT Low Impact Bridge Program, which is designed to speed up work using prefabricated bridge components.

Projects in the Low Impact program must meet such criteria as no geometry or grade changes, low environmental impacts, and all detours off-site and approved by local entities, a GDOT news release stated.