NASHVILLE, Tenn. -
Construction along the downtown loop of Interstate 24 will soon be a thing of the past.
The weekend of July 27 through 29 will mark the 11th weekend closure for the I-24 Bridge Rehabilitation Project, leaving only two more weekend closures for the month of August.
The project started April 20 and was expected to take 13 weekends to finish. So far, the project is on schedule. The shutdown extends in both directions on I-24, between the Interstate 65 and Interstate 40 interchanges. Woodland Street and Main Street are also shutdown during scheduled weekend closures to allow crews access to the bridges needing repair work.
According the Tennessee Department of Transportation Web site, "The rehabilitation of these two bridges on Interstate-24 in downtown Nashville will give these 1961 bridges over Main and Woodland Streets an additional 30 years of life and will avoid costly replacement."
Over the last 10 weekend closures, 237 of 277 bridge deck panels have been replaced. Four different construction crews work around the clock from Friday at 9pm to Monday at 5am to get the repairs done each weekend.
During those times, overhead electronic traffic billboards advise motorists to seek alternate routes. The primary routes include Briley Parkway or Interstate 65 and 40 through downtown. The detours have caused more congestion along those routes, especially between the evening hours of 4pm to 8pm, according TDOT spokesperson Deanna Lambert. However, there have been no reports of any major tie-ups during construction weekends.
The final 45 pre-fabricated concrete panels will be replaced during the upcoming weekend closures. The closures will also include paving and sealing layers of the highway.
The final weekend closures include August 3-5 and August 24-26. Currently, no closures are planned for the weekend of the Tomato Art Fest, East Nashville's wildly popular neighborhood festival, scheduled for Saturday, August 11.
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