I-35W Weekend Closure In Minneapolis: Schedule Released

MINNEAPOLIS, MN — Interstate 35W will close in both directions between Interstate 94 and Highway 62 in Minneapolis, beginning at 10 p.m., Friday, March 2, as crews demolish the 38th Street bridge. Southbound I-35W will be open to traffic south of 46th Street.

Crews will begin closing the on-and-off ramps for I-35W about one hour before closing the interstate. Motorists will be detoured using I-394, Highway 100 and Highway 62. I-35W will reopen to traffic by 5 a.m. Monday, March 5.

In addition, the 38th Street bridge spanning I-35W will close beginning at 6 a.m., Friday, March 2. Motorists should follow the posted detours. Westbound traffic will use Third Avenue S, 35th Street and Nicollet Avenue. Eastbound traffic will use Nicollet Avenue, 36th Street and Third Avenue S.

Transit officials said pedestrians should use the 40th Street pedestrian bridge to cross I-35W. The 38th Street bridge is expected to open in early-August, according to a news release.

To complete the work at the 38th Street bridge, the ramp from 36th Street to southbound I-35W will close at 2 a.m. Friday, March 2. Motorists should follow the posted detour. The ramp will remain closed through Fall 2021.

These closures are part of the four-year downtown to crosstown reconstruction project on I-35W between 43rd Street and downtown Minneapolis. The work includes reconstructing pavement, bridges and ramps on I-35W, adding new access ramps to the Lake Street Business District, building a transit station on the interstate and constructing new MnPASS lanes.

Image via Minnesota Department of Transportation