THURSDAY, June 18, 2026 |
Photo – Brush Creek Road bridge – Courtesy Sue Jones
County officials voted to close Brush Creek Road for the duration of the planned bridge replacement project.
The 100‑year‑old bridge over the North Platte River in Encampment, known as Bridge DML on Brush Creek Road, is set to be demolished and replaced under the Wyoming Department of Transportation’s Bridge Replacement Off System, or BROS, program in 2028.
The BROS program is a federally funded initiative to replace locally owned, structurally deficient bridges. Carbon County has three structures scheduled to be replaced under the program: the bridge over the Encampment River on Baggot Rocks Road, the Medicine Bow River bridge on County Road Three, and the Brush Creek Road bridge.
The Wyoming Department of Transportation originally planned to construct a temporary crossing to allow local traffic to continue using Brush Creek Road while the bridge was being replaced. However, WYDOT has estimated that closing the road during construction would save the state agency $1 million.
The bridge replacement project is estimated to cost $5.1 million, but adding a detour would increase the price to $6.6 million. The county is responsible for roughly 10 percent of the project, either $531,000 to close the road or $628,000 for the detour.
The Board of Carbon County Commissioners were reluctant to close the road, noting that residents and emergency services will be required to take a 30 mile detour out to Highway 130 to bypass the construction site.
On June 2nd, WYDOT and county officials met with residents in Saratoga to discuss the project. Speaking at Tuesday morning’s Board of County Commissioners meeting, Commissioner John Johnson said he was originally opposed to closing Brush Creek Road, but after seeing that a detour over the North Platte River would add a year and at least $1 million to the project, he changed his mind.
Commissioner John Johnson said attendees at the June 2nd meeting acknowledged the closure would inconvenience nearby landowners, yet most urged the county to finish the work as quickly as possible.
Commission Chairman Travis Moore agreed, adding that meeting attendees wanted the county to ensure that construction will have the smallest impact on residents.
With the planned closure, the Brush Creek Road bridge replacement project is expected to take one year to complete. Commission Vice Chairwoman Gwynn Bartlett asked if that timeline could be shortened. WYDOT Project Engineer Diego Fronza said the structure in question is larger than most his department works on, requiring it to be built in multiple sections.
Due to those circumstances, Fronza said the project is unlikely to be completed in less than nine months.
Commission Chairman Travis Moore asked if WYDOT had considered working day and night to finish the project as quickly as possible. He added that other states have found similar approaches save money.
WYDOT District Construction Engineer Ryan Shields said the agency doesn’t direct contractors on how to perform the work. Instead, it can offer financial incentives for meeting timeline goals or impose penalties for missing them.
Shields said WYDOT will consider all possible time savings techniques while engineering the bridge replacement project.
Commission Vice Chairwoman Gwynn Bartlett said attendees of the June 2nd meeting appreciated having two and a half years of notice to prepare for the closure.
The Brush Creek Road bridge is considered historic because of its age. As a result, it is unlikely to be scrapped like most bridges. The WYDOT representatives said the structure may be given to Brush Creek Ranch for preservation.
Following the presentation, the Board of Carbon County Commissioners unanimously voted to close the bridge replacement site during construction, adding that the job will be completed as quickly as possible.
