Tobin Bridge Ramp To Close For 2 Months

CHARLESTOWN, MA — Take a deep breath, and watch for detours if you ever take the Tobin to Chelsea: Beginning Monday, August 27, the off-ramp from the Tobin Bridge (Route 1) to Beacon Street in Chelsea will be closed to all traffic for two months.

This closure is part of the $41.6 million Tobin Bridge Repair Project to resurface the roadway and conduct repair work.

MassDOT encouraged drivers allow additional time when using the detour as traffic gets routed using the Fourth Street off-ramp and Broadway. Also notable; The direction of traffic on Chestnut Street between 3rd and 4th Streets will be reversed.

What about buses? Route 111 buses will exit the Tobin Bridge on the detour route at Fourth Street. The first service stop will be Broadway at Fourth Street. Buses will not stop at Beacon Street at Broadway or Park Street at Williams Street. Customers can instead connect at Broadway at Fourth or at Park Street at Cross Street.

This project involves repairing a section of the deck of the Tobin Bridge which carries traffic between the Charlestown neighborhood of Boston and Chelsea. Work is scheduled to be completed at the end of 2020. Three full lanes of travel will be in place on the Tobin Bridge this year during peak commuting hours. And this isn't the end of it. Sometime next year expect permanent lane closures on Route 1 northbound during the 2019 and 2020 construction seasons, MassDOT said in a release.

The full scope of work will include steel repairs to the upper and lower decks, concrete deck work on the lower deck, followed by waterproofing, resurfacing, and installing pavement markings. Operations will also consist of utility installation, installing curbing, paving, and constructing a new parking lot under the bridge between Williams Street and Third Street.

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Image courtesy MassDOT