Big projects on and around N.B.’s Hartland Covered Bridge in 2026

The Hartland Covered Bridge in New Brunswick will undergo work for five months in the new year.

The new year will begin with another extended closure for vehicles on the world’s longest covered bridge, coupled with a long-awaited redevelopment of Hartland, N.B.’s riverfront.

The Hartland Covered Bridge will be closed to vehicles starting Jan. 5, to make room for scaffolding which will repair the span’s pedestrian walkway.

The province’s department of transportation and infrastructure says the 390-metre-long bridge will remain open to pedestrians (who will be directed around construction on the bridge’s vehicle lane).

Local traffic between Hartland and Somerville will follow a detour across the Saint John River, on the nearby Hugh John Flemming Bridge.

The province says the Hartland Covered Bridge is scheduled to re-open to vehicles by June 15, adding the timeline may be pushed ahead if the weather cooperates.

It’s the latest in a string of Hartland Covered Bridge closures in recent years, including a five-month closure which began in January after the discovery of ice damage to the bridge’s wooden support system.

Hartland Mayor Tracey DeMerchant says residents have been able to maneuver effectively around past closures, calling the closures a necessary inconvenience.

“If it means this bridge is up and running and traversable by foot and by car for many years to come, I think that’s the more important thing,” says Demerchant.

The Hartland Covered Bridge officially opened in 1901 and was covered 20 years later, following damage from an ice jam. A pedestrian walkway was added to the bridge in 1945.

Redevelopment around the bridge in 2026

Aside from the span itself, government funding of close to $770,000 was confirmed earlier this month to redevelop the riverfront area around the covered bridge.

Project improvements, as stated by the municipality, will include:

• Safer access to the boat launch
• Replacement of the existing boat ramp
• Instillation of a removable dock system
• Installation of a boat rinsing station
• Creation of a dedicated sea container pad that can be leased by a local business for kayak, canoe, and other water equipment rentals
• Addition of lighting, signage, and landscaping around the boat launch area
• Replacement of the existing tourist bureau deck with a larger viewing platform connected to the washroom building, serving as a seating area with shade components, along with space for artisans, musicians, and buskers
• Improved landscaping around the bridge
• Instillation of decorative metalwork to the bridge’s height barrier

DeMerchant says ideas for the riverfront’s redevelopment came from community engagement sessions held in 2024. The project has been contracted to The Glenn Group based out of Fredericton, which also completed Nackawic ‘s recent riverfront redevelopment.

“I’m so pleased our residents will be able to enjoy this, not just the tourists who come through,” says DeMerchant. “To me that’s the most exciting part.”

DeMerchant says the municipality’s goal is for the new riverfront infrastructure to draw fishing tournaments to town.

Federal funding of $478,640 from the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency and provincial funding of $291,228 from the Regional Development Corporation was confirmed for the project.

The riverfront’s redevelopment is planned for completion by the end of 2026.

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