Expect delays as Seventh Street Bridge work begins

It’s finally here. Fort Worth motorists will begin to see and feel intermittent closures related to the reconstruction of the West Seventh Street bridge beginning Wednesday, May 8. Specifically: • Closure of Seventh Street from 8 p.m. May 8 through 5 a.m. May 14 (weather permitting) for placement of the first two bridge arches. • Intermittent overnight closures of Seventh Street from mid-May to mid-June, to place the remaining 10 arches. • Full bridge closure in mid-June with the new bridge open in 150 days or less, prior to Thanksgiving 2013. Lancaster Avenue will be the detour route. In addition to Seventh Street, other affected roadways will be Forest Park Boulevard, Stayton Street, 10th Street and Fournier Street. The Seventh Street bridge project is constructing the world’s first concrete “thru-arch” signature bridge between downtown and the Cultural District. The Texas Department of Transportation designed the bridge with six arch spans across the Trinity River to improve safety and pedestrian/bicycle access. Over the past year, the new arches were built offsite to minimize impacts. The original bridge was built in 1913.