Clinton St. closure will continue Monday and possibly Tuesday

FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WANE) - Clinton Street will stay closed on Monday and possibly Tuesday to finish part of the construction on the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Bridge.

The road closed on January 16 so crews could install large overhead steel arches on the bridge. Officials said the work would take 14 days, meaning the road would reopen on Monday, January 30.

Sunday, the Indiana Department of Transportation said the construction will need to continue through at least Monday.

In a news release, officials said crews still worked throughout the weekend to construct "integral segments of the bridge" in high winds and icy conditions.

Monday the vertical beams that will connect the arch beams to the deck are scheduled to be put in place.

"It should be emphasized that the Martin, Inc. and RL. McCoy erection crew will NOT sacrifice safety for speed. Each step requires great care as the steel gets higher in the air. This work is weather permitting," the press release said.

The current detours will remain in effect:

The official detour is east on SR 930/Coliseum Boulevard to Washington Boulevard west (Cloverleaf Interchange). Westbound Washington Boulevard will return to US 27 Downtown Fort Wayne. Truck traffic and especially semi-trucks are encouraged to use the official detour due to several 90 degree turns on the local detour.

The local detour begins at Clinton Street and 4th Street and follows 4th Street west to Harrison Street, then south on Harrison to Superior Street and east on Superior back to Clinton. Harrison and 4th Streets will be temporarily redirected as one-way streets during this construction period.

When the bridge is re-opened, one of the three lanes will stay closed for two to three more months. That will allow crews to finish illumination work on the bridge.

The whole project is scheduled to be done in the spring.