Babbs Bridge, Maine’s oldest covered bridge was

There are no records of the men who built Maine's covered bridges. Available town documents show that the chief concern of the thrifty citizens at town meetings was the amount of money their new bridge was to cost - which was entered to the last odd cent - and a brief line or two about its manner of construction.

In 1959, the 99th Maine legislature took a major step by enacting a law to preserve Maine's wooden covered bridges. The new law provided that state money could be used to save and renovate covered bridges. As a result, in 1961 the Department of Transportation undertook major renovations to the 10 remaining covered bridges.

There are two common types of bridge posting: vertical clearance and weight. Both postings require signs on or at the bridge, and advanced warning signs.

The Frank J. Wood Bridge (#2016) carries Route 201 over the Androscoggin River on the Brunswick-Topsham town line. MaineDOT and the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) have concluded the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) process.

The Maine Department of Transportation (MDOT) inspects all bridges and minor spans on public ways every two years in accordance with the National Bridge Inspection Standards (NBIS) (PDF) and MaineDOT’s Bridge Management Coding Guides. The collected data (for bridges only) is reported annually to the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and is used for determining safe load capacities and candidates for MaineDOT’s bridge capital and maintenance work.

Select a question below to view the answer.

What is a “bridge?"

A "bridge" is defined as having a span length of more than 20 feet, in accordance with Federal law. It also includes multiple pipes over a certain size.

What is a “minor span?"

A "minor span" is defined as having a span length of 10 to 20 feet.

Find important information about MaineDOT's bridge inventory including conditions, postings and inspection processes.

Find a Bridge

View bridge information by selecting a town/city below and pressing the "Go" Button.
If any questions or issues with the search tool below, please contact the Bridge Management section at 207-624-3300.

Of the more than 200 airports across the State, MaineDOT primarily focuses on 35 airports which are eligible for federal funding. Helping to ensure safe services and to maintain aviation facilities benefits surrounding communities as well as visitors to our State.

For more information, please reach out to the MaineDOT Aviation Division.

Maine Airport Information (List of public use airports in Maine)

This web page includes several letter templates in both the Microsoft Word and Adobe PDF formats, as well as a step-by-step overview of how utility coordination occurs throughout the development of a MaineDOT or MaineDOT-funded project.