Dubois County officials announce bridge closures, roadwork on busy routes

Dubois County drivers faced a major disruption as Bridge 78 at County Road 600 West and Division Road over the Patoka River was scheduled for a full closure for rehabilitation work. The bridge shut down immediately south of the intersection, but the crossing itself remained open, forcing traffic off the span for up to 60 days.

County Highway Engineer Levi Leffert said the contractor understood the bridge carried heavy traffic and that any extension of the closure would burden the public. That warning matters because Bridge 78 sits on a higher-traffic route, making it one of the county’s most sensitive roadwork sites this season.

Blankenberger Brothers Inc. was identified as the contractor for the project. The county had already awarded the Bridge 78 rehabilitation work, with American Structurepoint completing the plans and contract documents ahead of construction. The closure was expected to begin on or after April 8, 2026, with a separate report placing the full shutdown on Thursday, April 9.

The work is part of a larger slate of bridge rehabilitation projects moving through Dubois County, a county that maintains 527 miles of hard-surfaced roads. That network stretches the impact of even one bridge closure across daily travel patterns, especially for commuters, farm traffic, school transportation and emergency responders who rely on predictable rural routes.

Dubois County commissioners oversee the building and maintenance of roads and bridges, which places the Bridge 78 work squarely within the county’s infrastructure responsibilities. The county highway department has been signaling the project as a priority because of the bridge’s traffic volume and its location over the Patoka River, where delays and detours can ripple quickly through surrounding roads.

As the closure took effect, drivers heading through the County Road 600 West and Division Road corridor had to plan for a route without the bridge itself while the intersection remained open. The county’s message was clear: the repairs were meant to protect a heavily used crossing, but the short-term cost would be felt on one of the area’s most traveled local roads.