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Weekend lane closures planned for I-65N at Tennessee River Bridge

Looking south at the underside of two large bridges over a waterway. The bridge to the right has metal scaffolding suspended under it.
To rehabilitate the Tennessee River Bridges, the contractor, Cekra, first rigged scaffolding to access work areas.
Oct 01

Motorists should expect single-lane closures for rehabilitation work on the northbound I-65 Tennessee River Bridge each weekend in October, beginning this Friday.

The contractor will close the outside lane about 6 p.m. on Fridays and reopen it about 5 a.m. on Mondays.

Please expect delays on the northbound roadway during the weekends. Plan additional travel time or use alternate routes. For real-time traffic updates, including congestion and live traffic camera feeds, visit ALGOTraffic.com.

First and last planned daytime lane closures

Until now, lane closures on the river bridges have been limited to nighttime. The majority of the work has taken place under the bridge. However, concrete repairs to the deck of the northbound bridge will necessitate these longer-duration closures. Beyond the four weekends in October, no daytime lane closures are planned for the remainder of the project.

“We’ve worked closely with the contractor, Cekra, to limit impacts to traffic,” said ALDOT North Region Engineer Curtis Vincent. “They found ways to complete some work items overnight that we initially thought would require around-the-clock closures.”

A view between two bridges with scaffolding and containment.
The project includes painting the bridges and repairing concrete and structural steel. The northbound bridge, left, is draped with curtains for containment during cleaning.

Project status

The $23.7 million bridge rehab project includes cleaning, painting, and repairing concrete and structural steel on the 50-year-old bridges. Though originally anticipated to take more than two years, work is already more than halfway complete and the project appears on track for substantial completion in 2025.

Equipment on the ground under the bridge, viewed from scaffolding above.
Cekra used abrasive blasting to prepare surfaces for painting. Under the bridge, a large recycler separates material for disposal, such as old paint and rust, from the reusable steel grit used for blasting.
Green beams and braces under the bridge, with scaffold below.
Cleaned and freshly-painted steel members on the underside of the bridge deck.
Related Project
Region/County North/Limestone, Morgan
Type of WorkBridge Rehabilitation
RouteI-65
Projected StartJanuary 2024
Projected CompletionSpring 2026
Traffic ImpactSingle-lane closures between 6 p.m. and 6 a.m. Sunday nights through Thursday mornings during February 2024. Daytime lane closures will be necessary at times during the project, but will be limited to certain work items.

This project includes structural repairs, bridge painting, and guardrail retrofit on the I-65 bridges (northbound and southbound roadways) over the Tennessee River.

Read More “I-65 Tennessee River Bridges Rehabilitation”