Fall River Rt. 79 Bridge Demolition Starts Next Week

FALL RIVER — The next phase of Fall River's massive Route 79 corridor project will get underway next week with the demolition of a key bridge — at the same time as traffic over the Braga Bridge will be reduced by one lane.

That's according to two separate announcements from MassDOT, the state's transportation agency, on Wednesday.

Demolition of the Route 79 bridge over a pair of Davol Street U-turns will start on Monday, April 24 and go through Friday, April 28, with work taking place between 7 a.m. and 3:30 p.m.

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Detours will be in place for 24 hours a day beginning Monday morning and ending Friday afternoon, according to MassDOT.

The work will be undertaken at the same time as inspections of the Braga Bridge, which will see one lane of the bridge closed to vehicular traffic at a time.

Bridge inspections and lane closures will take place starting Monday, April 24 through Friday, April 28, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Drivers on I-195 near the bridge should expect delays.

Both the construction and the inspection work will be weather dependent and may be subject to change, the agency noted.

Drivers looking to change direction on Davol Street next week should turn around at Water Street via Anawan Street if heading south, or at President Avenue if heading north.

Pedestrians and cyclists should use marked crosswalks at City Pier and at President Avenue.

Davol Street will stay open during this construction phase, MassDOT stated.

The Davol Street and Route 79 corridor improvement project will see mobility and safety improvements to transform the mile-long stretch of road into a pedestrian- and bicycle-friendly boulevard, with connections between neighborhoods and the Taunton River waterfront area.

More details are available at mass.gov/route-79-davol-street-corridor-improvements.