Gov. Jack Markell (D-Delaware), Senator Tom Carper (D-Delaware) and DelDOT Secretary Jennifer Cohan were among the officials on-hand Friday in Wilmington to celebrate completion of the I-95 and U.S. Route 202 Interchange Project.
The project added an extra ramp from I-95 northbound to US Route 202 northbound to ease congestion over the Brandywine River bridge. I-95 southbound was lowered near the U.S. Route 202 bridge to address a vertical clearance problem that officials say was causing some trucks to get stuck.
"Hopefully people see when they come through the area that they can just flow easier through it. Hopefully less opportunity for crashes, it just could be an overall better drive through the interchange. And a lot of people use this interchange every day," said Mark Tutor, the project manager for the 202 interchange project .
Markell lauded the project. "This is going to be a big relief for a lot of people," he said, and added that he was "thrilled this is going to create a lot of jobs."
In her remarks, Mary Ridgeway, of the Federal Highway Administration, said that for every dollar a community puts into projects like this, they get four back. Construction along the area lasted for three years. The total cost was around $33 million.
The project was a state and federal partnership, with the federal government covering 80 percent of the overall price tag.
