Overnight work will result in closure of Oshawa bridge this weekend

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Published May 1, 2024 at 7:57 pm

Oshawa, highway, closure, detour, bridge, construction,

Nighttime work on the Simcoe St. S. bridge this weekend will create some traffic headaches for Oshawa residents over the next couple of weeks.

Construction this weekend will result in the bridge being closed beginning Friday night (May 3) at 9 p.m. until 6 a.m. on Monday (May 6).

Workers are busy preparing for the second half of the Simcoe St. S. bridge to be demolished and for that to happen the must first get the area on the newly created half of the bridge ready for traffic use.

There will be a full closure of the bridge from Bloor St. to the westbound on-ramp and closure of the of the eastbound Simcoe St. off-ramp.

Detour routes will be available for drivers, including:

  • Highway 401 eastbound off-ramp: Drivers can exit at Stevenson St. eastbound off-ramp or at the Ritson St. eastbound off-ramp.
  • Northbound traffic on Simcoe St.: Traffic will be detoured west on Bloor St. to Stevenson Rd. where they will head north and then head east on Gibb St. to Simcoe St. S.
  • Southbound Traffic on Simcoe St.: Traffic will be detoured east on Olive Ave. to Ritson Rd. S. where they will head south.

The City of Oshawa says access to Highway 401 westbound on-ramp from Simcoe St. No. will remain open throughout this closure.

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The overnight work will continue next weekend, and local drivers should be aware that Highway 401 will be closed from Simcoe St. to Drew St. beginning at 11 p.m. on Saturday, May 11 until 7 a.m. on Sunday, May 12.

Some lane closures starting Saturday at 9 p.m. will be fully reopened by Sunday at 9 a.m.

The closure will allow workers to perform bridge demolition on the existing Simcoe St. S. Underpass at Highway 401.

Detour routes include:

  • Eastbound Traffic on Highway 401: All lanes of traffic will exit at the Simcoe St. off-ramp (East/West) and follow Bloor St. eastbound until reaching the next available Highway 401 on-ramp located west of Fourth Ave.
  • Westbound Traffic on Highway 401: All lanes of traffic will exit at the Drew St. off-ramp, proceed north to the intersection of First Ave. and Drew St., and then follow First Ave. westbound to Simcoe St. From there, traffic will head southbound towards the Simcoe St. on-ramp to access Highway 401 westbound.

The need to wider structures was identified by the Ministry of Transportation’s Environmental Assessment process to accommodate the future widening of Highway 401 through Oshawa.

Completion work of all construction is expected by Nov. 2024.

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