Rain won't interfere with weekend plans this time for the second closure of Interstate 24 at the bridges over Germantown Road as crews prepare to replace the westbound spans as part of an ongoing $32.9 million bridge project.
Starting at 9 p.m. Friday the contractor, Bell and Associates Construction, will begin operations to replace the interstate bridges on I-24 over Germantown Road and will close the interstate in both directions while rerouting motorists around the work until traffic resumes its normal pattern by 6 a.m. Monday, according to Tennessee Department of Transportation spokesperson Jennifer Flynn.
Rain forced the delay of the work last weekend when a couple of inches of precipitation fell on Chattanooga. Flynn said the first portion of the work on the weekend of April 16-19 went better than expected, and the region's TDOT director thought so, too.
"We were very pleased with the incredible amount of work that was accomplished during the first weekend closure, and we are anticipating that this weekend's work will go equally well," TDOT Region II Director Joe Deering said Wednesday. "Bell Construction was very efficient in all their operations, and they completed the work 11 hours ahead of schedule on the first weekend closure."
Deering expressed his thanks for help from state and local law enforcement.
"Among other things, they kept traffic flowing smoothly along the detour route," he said. "It was truly a team effort and our thanks go out to all involved. We are looking forward to another successful weekend."
The National Weather Service forecasts only a chance of showers early Friday, then mostly clear skies through Saturday night. There is a 30% chance of rain Sunday after 2 p.m. The high should be around 81.
The important part for drivers is when the interstate is shut down Friday using a rolling roadblock that will guide motorists onto the detour in both directions at the same time, officials said.
Starting at 9 p.m. on the westbound side of I-24, all traffic will exit the interstate using a temporary off-ramp, travel along North Terrace and return to the interstate using the existing on-ramp at Germantown Road.
On the eastbound side, all traffic will exit the interstate at Germantown Road - exit 183 - travel along South Terrace and return to I-24 using a temporary on-ramp.
There will be no access from local streets to the I-24 entrance and exit ramps along this stretch during the closures, and detour routes will be provided online and by way of overhead and portable message boards, TDOT officials said.
In preparation for the closure on I-24, the traffic pattern on nearby local roads will be adjusted before the interstate is shut down, according to officials. Those final adjustments will take place around 6 p.m. Friday and 7 a.m. Monday.
The Belvoir Avenue bridge over I-24 was closed April 20, 2020, when the contractor began constructing that new bridge as part of the larger project that also includes replacement of the bridges over Germantown Road. The bridge on Belvoir Avenue was reopened at the end of March.
The bridges along I-24 at Germantown Road and Belvoir Avenue in downtown Chattanooga were originally built in 1964. Inspections in recent years found the two spans to have structural deterioration and deficiencies that needed to be addressed, according to an overview of the project.
The American Transportation Research Institute 2021 top 100 list of truck bottlenecks places Chattanooga's Interstate 75/Interstate 24 "Split" just north of the Tennessee-Georgia line at No. 7, nationally, while the interchange at I-24 and U.S. Highway 27 closer to downtown is ranked No. 53.
The Germantown Road bridge project lies between those two troublesome interchanges.
Readers can find more information on the I-24 bridge replacement project and sign up for project updates at bit.ly/i24bridge.
Contact Ben Benton at bbenton@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6569. Follow him on Twitter @BenBenton or at www.facebook.com/benbenton1.