The Maine Department of Transportation is postponing the planned closure of I-295 over Veranda Street in Portland. Following extensive conversations with design consultants and construction contractors, MaineDOT engineers decided that the three-day closure of I-295 will need to be delayed.
The closure of the interstate and Veranda Street (under the bridge) are required to replace the aging Veranda Street Bridge with the new bridge currently being built next to the interstate.
State officials do not have a new date for the closure weekend. The project is still on track to be completed by the end of 2022.
“Challenges involving the lightweight geofoam fill being used on this project require more time to make sure the work meets our safety requirements,” said MaineDOT chief engineer Joyce Taylor in a prepared statement. “A national resin shortage is slowing our ability to obtain the additional material we'll need in order to get the site ready for the accelerated bridge construction process.”
MaineDOT had originally planned to close the interstate between October 22nd and 25th. The department had planned to close Route 1/Veranda Street (under the bridge) between October 18th and 25th.
Changing the closure weekend will not create additional traffic impacts. All lanes of both I-295 and Route 1/Veranda Street will remain open and passable.
Source: Maine DOT
