Mississippi Department of Transportation officials said Wednesday that the Delaware Avenue overpass would likely be closed until the early part of December, and preparations to adjust traffic flow to accommodate the work are underway.
The overpass closed Oct. 23 after an oversized load on a northbound truck shifted and struck the bridge, scraping away concrete and mangling rebar.
MDOT spokesperson Anna Ehrgott said Wednesday that plans for the bridge repair have been completed, but a contract for the work still needs to be finalized.
Ehrgott said the cost of repairs will likely be in the range of several hundred thousand dollars.
Ehrgott said MDOT anticipates the repair work will take place during the first or second week in December and will last three to four days, weather permitting.
That fits in with the anticipated eight-week closure MDOT officials had projected last month.
While the repairs are taking place, interstate traffic will be reduced to one lane of traffic on the northbound side of the interstate, Ehrgott said.
Ehrgott said MDOT crews are working to widen the northbound lanes, using part of the median, in order to reroute traffic flow during the repair.
“We will alert the public of the lane closures associated with the bridge repair work as soon as it is scheduled,” Ehrgott said. “As a safety precaution, the Delaware Avenue bridge will remain closed to traffic until repairs are complete.”
