I-80 bridges over Meander finished next week

AUSTINTOWN — The Interstate 80 twin bridges over Meander Reservoir are scheduled to open for traffic next week, ending more than three years of construction on the $91.5 million project.

Dignitaries from the construction crew and state and local government cut a ribbon on Wednesday to commemorate the reopening of the westbound bridge, set for Tuesday. Construction crews widened the 2,500-foot bridges from four to six lanes and installed a chemical containment system to prevent contamination of the Valley’s drinking water.

“This was probably one of the biggest projects built over water like this,” said Eric Czetli, district deputy director for the Ohio Department of Transportation District 4. District 4 includes Mahoning, Trumbull, Ashtabula, Portage, Stark and Summit counties.

The project stretches about 4.2 miles from the interchange at the Ohio Turnpike to state Route 11. Crews worked from barges to keep two lanes of traffic open along I-80, the primary corridor connecting Chicago and New York. Traffic since 2007 has crossed Meander on two lanes, each direction, of the eastbound span.

Although the bridges are scheduled to reopen for six-lane traffic next week, construction crews will be in the area doing touch up work, such as rumble strips and striping, for another month, said Joe Alfano, project engineer.

About 55,000 vehicles, 30 percent of which are trucks, travel the bridges each day, Czetli said.