HERTFORD — State transportation contractors will begin driving five concrete piles into the bed of the Perquimans River this week, marking the start of construction for the replacement of the 90-year-old Hertford ‘S-Bridge’.

Once installed, the five piles will be extensively tested to ensure they are strong enough to support the weight of the bridge and are long enough to prevent scour. Once those tests are complete, the new bridge’s remaining piles will be ordered, cast, shipped and installed.

The bridge replacement is part of the N.C. Department of Transportation’s $57 million project to upgrade and improve U.S. Highway 17 Business/N.C. Highway 37 between Hertford and Winfall in northern Perquimans County. Besides the bridge replacement, the project also includes improving the causeway north of the bridge, which has been damaged by the settling of the ground underneath it.

McLean Contracting of Chesapeake, Va., was awarded the contract for the project, which is scheduled to be complete in December 2021.