The Suggs Creek bridge on Stewarts Ferry Pike near Gladeville reopened after a 10-month closure that cut a nearby market's business by as much as 75 percent and added up to 20 minutes to residents' daily drives.

The reopening, first reported by News Channel 5 on Wednesday, Oct. 14, ends a stretch of detours that began when the bridge closed Jan. 5 for a full replacement. Nearby resident Nick Formosa said the closure forced him to plan every trip in advance or turn around and backtrack.

The owners of Suggs Creek Market, located near the bridge, said business dropped 70 to 75 percent during the closure. Taksh Patel, whose family owns the market, said customers are returning now that the road is open again.

"I feel great, every customer can come into our store now," Patel told News Channel 5.

The federal government directed the Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) to close several Wilson County bridges after updated inspection standards found them beyond repair, according to a Wilson County notice posted June 4. The county's Road Commission has repaired other bridges in-house, including structures on Patton Hollow Road, Northern Road and Philadelphia Road.

The Suggs Creek project hit repeated delays. Wilson County Road Superintendent Steve Murphy said weather, logistics and supply chain problems slowed the work. Structural beams needed 90 days to cure before they could be moved, and the bridge deck required a separate 27-day curing period, Murphy said in a September report by News Channel 5.

The original timeline projected completion by late June. That target slipped to August, then mid-October. A Wilson County update on Sept. 28 showed paving was complete and crews were finishing the bridge railing, with guardrails, striping and a final state inspection still ahead.

The contract deadline ran through January 2027, so crews finished roughly three months early. Murphy said the new bridge should serve the area for decades.

"It will be here for probably another 40 years," Murphy said.