You can almost hear the rejoicing coming from commuters in the southwest metro as MnDOT on Tuesday said construction on the Bloomington Ferry Bridge could be completed as early as Wednesday evening.
Following Tuesday's evening rush hour, crossovers that had been used to move traffic from one side of the bridge to the other will be closed. Traffic will continue to be a single lane, but northbound and southbound traffic will stay on their respective sides of the bridge.
Also tonight, the following ramps to and from northbound Hwy. 169 will reopen:
- Pioneer Trail
- Old Shakopee Road
- Hwy. 101
- County Road 21
The big news is that on Wednesday after the barriers are removed and the lane stripping is complete, all lanes will be open. That is two days earlier than expected.
"They will begin removals today and sometime tomorrow all lanes and ramps in both directions will be open," said Kirsten Klein, a MnDOT spokeswoman.
On Friday at 10 p.m., MnDOT will close the ramp from westbound Hwy. 101 to northbound Hwy. 169 for restriping. It will reopen for the Monday rush hour, officials said.
That will be the final lane closure associated with the project which has created massive backups during the morning and evening rush hours and brought headaches for commuters since it began on July 26.
The $5.45 million project included replacing seal joints on the Bloomington Ferry Bridge, shoulder work along the highway between Old Shakopee Road and County Road 18 and drainage repair.
