Major Traffic Change Coming to Western Avenue in Augusta, Maine, This Fall
UPDATE: October 26th, 2024
According to the KJ, the eastbound on-ramp at I-95 Exit 109 will be closed for about 30 days starting Monday. There will be a detour that will allow drivers traveling east the ability to get on I-95.
Check out a map of the detour HERE
The original story follows...
A major Western Avenue construction project, slated to start in November, will cause significant traffic issues.
Fortunately, those issues will be temporary.
According to the KJ, the replacement of a bridge over I-95 will ramp up this fall. The replacement of the bridge, which the article refers to as the Western Avenue Bridge, will take about a year and cost nearly $31 million.
Part of one of the main arteries into Maine's capital city, the bridge sees about 25,000 vehicles each weekday. The new bridge will be taller than the current bridge. It will be 16 feet above the I-95, two feet taller than the current bridge. One of the other big improvements is upgraded sidewalks.
It should come as no surprise that a project this expansive will require a few traffic pattern changes.
During a significant portion of that project, traffic will be moved to a smaller, temporary bridge. The normal bridge carries six lanes of traffic, while the temporary bridge will only have three lanes.
Several very temporary changes will need to be put in place during the project. For a few days, just before the temporary bridge opens, both of the Exit 109 ramps will be closed. That closure will only take a few days, and will be done over a weekend.
Additionally, Exit 109B, which allows traffic to exit the I-95 in a westerly direction (toward Winthrop) will be closed for about 30 days. During that time period, people will still be able to leave the interstate from Exit 109A.
There is one long-duration traffic change that will need to occur as part of the project.
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The article explains that for much of the project, westbound traffic will not be able to turn on Whitten Road. Instead, they'll need to hop on the I-95 on-ramp in order to access a temporary road. Several popular businesses, including Hannaford, are located on Whitten Road.
The new bridge is expected to be open by October of 2025, but it is likely the work will not be completely finished until early-2026.
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Gallery Credit: Sean McKenna