Knik River bridge spans to temporarily reopen

What you need to know:

• Crews will temporarily reopen all lanes on the Knik River bridge over Memorial Day weekend after completing work on the northbound span.
• The southbound span will close starting June 2, and all traffic will be diverted onto the newly completed northbound span. The detour will mirror the system used during construction on the northbound side.
• The $21 million project is the first significant overhaul of the bridge spans, which carry more than 31,000 vehicles daily.

PALMER — The Knik River bridge on the Glenn Highway near Palmer will temporarily reopen to all traffic over the upcoming long weekend as construction crews wrap up the northbound span closure ahead of the Memorial Day holiday, state transportation officials announced Wednesday.

On and off ramps from the Glenn Highway to the Knik River Access Road and Reflections Lake will also temporarily reopen for the long weekend, as will on-ramps from the Old Glenn Highway, officials said.

The update marks the halfway point for the most disruptive portion of a major resurfacing project on the bridge spans, expected to last until early July. The next phase will fully shut down the southbound span and is scheduled to start June 2. 

All traffic will be routed into three lanes on the newly restored northbound span while the southbound side is closed, officials said. That plan mirrors a system used during this month’s work on the northbound bridge.

As with the earlier closure, a Road Zipper machine will reconfigure barriers twice a day to provide two lanes of travel for the direction with the heaviest traffic, officials said. Crews will shift the lanes at about 3 a.m. and 11 a.m. on weekdays throughout the closure, officials said.

Although some final construction work may continue into August, officials said they expect all lanes on both bridge spans to be fully open by early July.

About 31,400 vehicles cross the Knik River Bridge each day, according to state traffic data. The federally funded $21 million project is the first major overhaul for both bridge spans.

While commuters and state planners initially feared the bridge closures would trigger major delays, that has not been the case so far, said Jason Lamoreaux, a construction manager with the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities.

“We were pretty happy with the way things went on this first one and are just looking to repeat the process on the second bridge since it seems to be working well,” he said.

Lamoreaux said drivers may experience slightly more congestion during the second closure due to tourist and recreational traffic.

“We’re asking drivers to continue being patient and doing what they’re doing, and hopefully it’ll continue to be a good experience for everybody,” he said.