Chickahominy River - Crossing of Rt. 5 Near Mouth

Crossing of Rt. 5 Near Mouth

Near the mouth of the river and its confluence with the James River, State Route 5 crosses the river on the Judith Stewart Dresser Bridge, a fixed-span bridge between Charles City County and James City County built in 2009. It replaced a swing-span movable bridge that was built in 1939. The new $33.6 million fixed-span began construction in 2007 and opened on January 24, 2009. Located just west of the previous structure, it rises to a height of 52 feet (16 m) and includes a separate pathway for the Virginia Capital Trail project.

The clearance for recreational boats used to be 12 feet (3.7 m) when the bridge was in the closed position. Vehicles on the highway were also limited by a 13'11" clearance restriction. The bridge was built on wood pilings and became increasingly troublesome mechanically and expensive to maintain as it aged.