Bridge between Wildwood Crest and Cape May closed due to motor failure, could take weeks to repair

UPDATE: The Middle Thorofare Bridge/Two Mile Bridge has reopened. Latest details here.
WILDWOOD CREST, N.J. (CBS) -- The Middle Thorofare Bridge/Two Mile Bridge, which connects Wildwood Crest and Diamond Beach to Cape May, New Jersey, will be closed for the foreseeable future.

Wildwood Crest Mayor Don Cabrera posted on Facebook around 6:15 a.m. Sunday the bridge was closed to vehicles, bikes and pedestrians due to a "motor failure that could not be repaired."

In a statement released Sunday afternoon, the Cape May Bridge Commission said the bridge experienced a "total failure of the drive shaft motor that was used to open the bridge on demand" at 10 a.m. on Saturday, Aug. 17. Tests determined "the motor was inoperable and irreparable," the commission said.

The mayor said Sunday that there's no timeline for when the bridge will reopen and that it could be closed for "an extended period of time." On social media, the Cape May County Sheriff's Office said "major mechanical repairs" were needed to fix the issue.

The Cape May Bridge Commission echoed the severity of the issue, saying the goal of replacing the motor could take "many weeks."

Because the motor is a customized part made specifically for the bridge, they can't easily replace it. They have to build a whole new one, which will take months. 

The immediate solution is to obtain a temporary auxiliary motor that can be delivered and installed as early as one week.

However, raising the bridge will take 10 to 12 minutes rather than two to three minutes. While that's in place, they'll work on building the main motor. 

"Best case scenario for the auxiliary motor being in place and this bridge fully operational, absolute best with all the dominoes falling our way, seven to 10 days," Kevin Lare, the executive director of the Cape May County Bridge Commission, said. "Worst case scenario – four weeks. Primary motor is 20-25 weeks to have it built."  

The bridge will remain in the up position so commercial vessels can continue to pass through.

According to Cape May County, more than 560,000 cars crossed the Middle Thorofare Bridge in 2023, which also provides access to New Jersey's largest commercial fishing port.

"The decision to keep the bridge in the open position supports the county's second largest industry and hundreds of jobs," a county spokesperson told CBS News Philadelphia.

Drivers heading south toward Cape May, Lower Township and the Garden State Parkway, or north toward Wildwood Crest, will need to use alternative routes.

CBS Philadelphia traffic anchor Chandler Lutz says commuters heading into Wildwood Crest can take Route 47 or Route 147 through North Wildwood.  

Meanwhile, businesses on either side of the bridge say they expect to lose out on customers who travel from either side, especially with Labor Day looming ahead. 

At Mooncussers Bar in Cape May, Dave Haentze was headed into work Sunday when he saw a sign the bridge was closed.

"That was the first I heard about it that it was going to be stuck open," Haentze, the general manager of Mooncusser's, said. 

The bar Haentze manages is on the Cape May side of the Middle Thorofare Bridge, where an old motor failed. Haentze said he knew this would be bad for business. 

"This bridge is obviously pretty important to us," Haentze said. "We have Diamond Beach right next to us and Wildwood Crest and normally, it's a quick little hop, skip, and a jump over here. "

Customers can no longer make the short trip. The bridge's closure has made a three- to four-minute drive from Lower Wildwood Crest to Cape May a nearly 20-minute drive. 

"I'm hoping they'll still make a good effort to come around," Haentze said. 

On the other side of the bridge, beachgoers and boaters by Diamond Beach aren't so happy.

"We can't get to Cape May, we'll have to go the other way around on Rio Grande," Brad Zacharia said. 

"We use this bridge frequently, I mean, multiple times a day. Now we're in a bind trying to get to our boat," Mark Wallacavage said. 

But this closure is more than just an inconvenience for tourists. 

In an emergency, Diamond Beach residents rely on Lower Township police to respond.

Lower Township police always have one patrol car in the area. When they need backup, they typically can get it in a matter of minutes when more cars come right over the bridge. 

Now that it's shut down, the Lower Township police chief said Wildwood Crest police have stepped up to provide backup. 

County officials said they're working to replace the motor as quickly as possible. 

In:
• New Jersey
• Jersey Shore
• Wildwood Crest
• Traffic
• Cape May County