Bantam’s Route 202 Bridge Reopens Early, Much To Commuters’ Relief

I drove into some unexpected, good news 10 minutes into myt morning commute to work today - The temporary Summerlong closure of Rt. 202 in Bantam for a bridge replacement has finished almost a month ahead of schedule.

Rt. 202 (Bantam Road) in Bantam had been temporarily shut down for the past six weeks (From Monday, June 16, 2025) but work on the replacement of the bridge that carries 202 over the Still Brook has finished up as of Friday, August 1, a full month ahead of the scheduled 8/31/25 reopening date.

I got an email from Bantam Cinema relaying the good news over the weekend on Saturday but got to see the brand-new bridge for myself at 4AM this morning. The photo you see above was a relief. Not that I minded the detour down 209 past the amazing West Shore Seafood, but this temporary detour did make me a bit more paranoid of striking an animal. From what I can tell, the wildlife of Bantam was used to avoiding the 50+ MPH traffic normally seen on 202, but they were not ready for the increased traffic on 109 and 209 into Washington and New Milford.

But Wait...The Bridge Replacements Aren't Over in Litchfield

According to townoflitchfield.org Brush Hill Road will be closed as of today, around the clock, just east of Duck Pond Road in town for the complete replacement of the Brush Hill Road bridge until Monday August 25. 2025.

It's nice to have a massive project finish ahead of schedule, a big thank you to the strong men and women that did this important work.