The closure of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in March is set to increase the mid-Atlantic trucking industry’s operating costs by $92.8 million in 2025 and each year after while the key regional thoroughfare is rebuilt, according to researchers.

A section of the Key Bridge collapsed March 26 after a containership, MV Dali 3, collided with a support pillar, diverting traffic onto alternate, longer routes, particularly for carriers and drayage companies serving the Port of Baltimore.

The port reopened in June, but the bridge is not scheduled to be ready for trucks until 2028, if work remains on schedule, which is likely to impose a total of $446 million in overall operating costs for carriers, a study by University of Maryland and Morgan State University researchers shows.

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