Hancock Street Bridge construction in Quincy to reduce lanes

By Jessica Bartlett, Town Correspondent

Construction on the Hancock Street Bridge in Quincy will reduce traffic to one lane in each direction starting next Monday, and motorists can expect delays for more than a year.

The lanes are being closed so the Massachusetts Department of Transportation can work on construction of the bridge over Sagamore Street.

From Dec. 6 to Dec. 10, 7 a.m. – 3:30 p.m., the right-hand, northbound lane of the bridge will be closed while the contractor removes a portion of the sidewalk.

Upon completion, jersey barriers will restrict the southbound side of the bridge to traffic.

After the work zone is put in place, traffic will be reduced to one lane for both the southbound and northbound sides.

According to the city’s website, there will be a right-turn-only restriction in place at the intersection of Kendall and Hancock Streets.

The construction, which is expected to be completed in June 2012, will replace or repair the superstructure of the bridge, and will replace the concrete deck slab with a new one, which will then be superpaved (a hot mix asphalt overlay).

Traffic will remain open to only one lane throughout the construction, said Richard Nangle, a spokesperson for the MassDot.

“Also included is … minor roadway profile adjustments, excavation and removal of the existing pavement, placement of a new pavement structure, the installation of a water main, new highway guardrail transitions, the reconstruction of sections of sidewalk, the construction of new wheelchair ramps and the installation of new pavement markings and signs,” Nangle wrote in an e-mail.

MassDOT requests that residents drive carefully through the reconfigured work zone.