Bridge Project To Commence In Independence

Travelers on Highway 53 to and from the Iron Range will want to be aware of the bridge project scheduled to start on Tuesday, May 8th.

MnDOT is preparing to build a new bridge and repair a second bridge in Independence - an area that is also known as the "Cloquet Cut-Off".

Specifically:

May 8 – May 10

Motorists will encounter daytime single-lane closures while bypasses are constructed.

May 14 – May 15

The Highway 33 bridge will close and motorists will encounter a short detour. Motorists on southbound Highway 53 will be detoured onto southbound Highway 33 then County Road 7 from 7 p.m. to 6 a.m.

May 16

The northbound lanes of Highway 53 will close. Traffic will be restricted to single-lane in each direction on the southbound lanes.

When it's finished, there will be a new bridge on Highway 33, which passes over Highway 53 - along with a new bridge over the Cloquet River on northbound Highway 53.

MnDOT expects both projects to wrap up in August 2012.