NAPLES — A new bridge on the causeway between Long Lake and Brandy Pond is now open to traffic.

Hundreds of people hung over the rail to watch a parade of antique cars drive over the old swing bridge around 1:30 this afternoon for the last time.

After they crossed, a caravan of brand new cars, on loan from Macdonald Motors in Bridgton, were the first to drive over the new bridge, ending an hourlong ceremony to celebrate the opening of the bridge — part of an $11 million Maine Department of Transportation project.

There’s still work to be done on the causeway. Sidewalks need to be installed, and a seawall that descends down to the water and wraps underneath the bridge still needs to be completed.

The entire project is slated to be done by next spring at the latest, and possibly by this fall.

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