A brief but disruptive highway project begins Friday evening in Portland.
A part of Interstate 295 north of Tukey's Bridge will be closed to traffic in both directions while crews demolish an old bridge over Veranda Street and install a new one that's already been constructed.
State transportation spokesman Paul Merrill says the closure is likely to cause travel delays.
"People are generally understanding, when push comes to shove, about the work that we have to do when it is disruptive. We just hope people are aware, plan ahead, and continue to be patient and understanding with our crews and our contractor partners who are down here working hard to try and make this a better area of the city," he says.
The replacement could have taken a few years. Instead, Merrill says it will take just this weekend.
"60 hours, tear down the old structure, pop in the new one, pave it, and be generally done after that weekend," he says.
The highway closure is to begin at 7 p.m. and end at 11 a.m. Monday. Detour information is available at a state website, verandaplan.org.
