West Bank dwellers will find cement trucks and orange construction signs a common sight during the next four weeks.
The 20th Avenue South bridge over Interstate 94 will close Monday for resurfacing.
The bridge is adjacent to the Cedar-Riverside neighborhood, the University’s West Bank, Augsburg College and several University contract parking lots.
Construction will reroute traffic down Cedar Avenue and Seventh Street South.
Project supervisor Leon Lillie said the bridge is structurally sound, but officials deemed an additional concrete overlay necessary to extend the crossing’s life span.
Built in 1966, the bridge’s average daily traffic is about 5,600 vehicles.
“Thirty years is a long period of time for a bridge,” Lillie said.
Resurfacing should eliminate the need for any maintenance for the next 15 to 20 years, Lillie said.
The bridge’s sidewalks will remain open for pedestrian traffic throughout construction.
Officials said construction will not affect traffic on I-94.
Weather permitting, the project is expected to be complete by mid-June.
— Michelle Moriarity