Two I-495 lanes close, leaving one open

The left two lanes of the Interstate 495 bridge over Terminal Avenue in Wilmington closed today in the northbound direction, leaving just one lane open.

Construction crews are replacing a bridge joint along that span and closed the right lane and shoulder the previous two weeks for the work. The current 2-lane closure will last for two more weeks.

In October, a road maintenance worker found the broken metal bridge joint on the span, prompting this nearly month-long construction project. The metal connector allows the bridge to flex and expand.

The on-ramp to northbound I-495 at Terminal Avenue will remain shut down until the work is complete.

Crews are replacing the broken bridge joint with a concrete one, said Bud Freel spokesman for the Delaware Department of Transportation. The broken joint does not pose any danger to drivers, he said, and its replacement coincides with a broader move by the department to replace those metal joints. These connectors allow the bridge to expand and contract as temperatures change through the seasons, Freel said.

Freel could not pinpoint what caused the joint to break but noted that the bridge “was inspected last year and it was fine.”

Crews from DelDOT contractor Eastern Highway Specialists will work two 10-hour shifts, six days a week, until the job is complete, Freel said.

Construction on the I-495 bridge columns over the Christina River shut down the expressway completely during the summer of 2014. Vehicles diverted to I-95 during that emergency project causing gridlock through the core of Wilmington.

DelDOT informed the Port of Wilmington of the closure, and the facility's shippers have been alerted, said John Haroldson, manager of international trade at that port.

Compared with the complete closure of I-495 one year ago, this project is "not a big deal" for the Port of Wilmington's operations, he said. The professional truckers that bring shipments to and from the facility know how to detour around the segment of highway, if necessary, he said.

"We also have this on our website if people have any questions," Haroldson said.

Contact Karl Baker at kbaker@delawareonline.com or (302) 324-2329. Follow him on Twitter @kbaker6.