WASHINGTON — Work on Arlington Memorial Bridge was scheduled to close all lanes this weekend, but with the expected arrival of Hurricane Florence, the National Park Service announced that the closure has been pushed back.
Now, instead of Friday, the temporary closure of both sidewalks and all six lanes on the crumbling bridge is planned for 7 p.m. on Sept. 21 through 5 a.m. on Sept. 24.
The closure will affect drivers, cyclists and pedestrians, who are all asked to find alternate routes. Boaters are also asked to approach the bridge with caution.
The park service said the work will involve bringing a crane next to the bridge on a barge on the Potomac river and cutting holes into the bridge deck’s center span.
The holes will then be covered for driver use of the bridge and the park service said it will begin replacing the bridge’s road deck around mid-October. September’s closure “will prepare the bridge for that work and will ensure that the work begins on time,” the park service said in a news release Tuesday.
Other lane closures are expected to happen for more upcoming work.
“Over the next two and a half years, we expect a limited number of full bridge closures on weekends and occasional, short full closures of the bridge at night,” the park service said.
Another full weekend closure is scheduled for November.
