Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg stated on Wednesday that there is no specific timeline yet for when the Port of Baltimore can be opened again after the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsed the day before.
He said during the White House daily press briefing that it's too early to guess when it will reopen. Most of the port is under the bridge, so it can't function.
Buttigieg is worried about the local economy due to the port closure. He mentioned that 8,000 jobs are directly tied to the port and over $100 million worth of cargo goes through the port every day.
He explained that reopening the port is different from rebuilding the bridge. Reopening the port involves clearing the channel, which is expected to take less time than rebuilding the entire bridge.
When asked if it will take days, weeks, or months, Buttigieg said he is asking his teams the same question to determine the timeline.
He also mentioned that Sparrows Point, a nearby facility, and other east coast ports are handling some of the cargo in the meantime.
President Biden vowed to rebuild the bridge after the cargo ship Dali crashed into it at around 1:30 a.m. on Tuesday, causing it to collapse. The ship was heading to Sri Lanka. This caused the collapse. President Biden expects the federal government to pay for the rebuilding, with Congress’s support.
Buttigieg said the administration needs to assess the infrastructure's condition before determining a timeline for the bridge reopening, but it will take a while.
He mentioned that it took five years to build the original bridge, but replacing it doesn't necessarily mean another five years.
Buttigieg expressed concern for the port workers during the reconstruction process and assured that the administration will make every effort to assist them.
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said Wednesday that there’s currently no timeline for when the Port of Baltimore can reopen following the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge a day prior. “Too soon to venture an estimate,” he told reporters during the White House daily press briefing. “The vast majority of the port is inside…
