McKnight Boulevard delays expected as bridge joints over Deerfoot Trail replaced

​Traffic delays are expected as crews work on the McKnight Boulevard bridge over Deerfoot Trail for the next eight weeks or so.

Prep work is set to begin Tuesday night, and lane and speed reductions will kick in on Thursday, said Anna Neale with Alberta Transportation.

"The existing bridge joints basically have reached the end of their natural life and they need to be replaced," she said. "We're also doing some work on concrete repairs and some crack sealing."

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The province, not the city, is doing the work because Deerfoot Trail is an Alberta highway and Neale said provincial responsibility extends to both the bridge above it and about 150 metres of McKnight Boulevard on either side of the bridge.

"Major delays" are expected on both McKnight and Deerfoot in the vicinity of the bridge, the province cautioned.

Two westbound and one eastbound McKnight Boulevard lanes will remain open for traffic approaching the bridge, but lane widths will be narrower and the speed limit will be reduced to 50 km/h.

Ramp access for large commercial trucks will also be restricted while the work is going on, and affected trucks will have to use alternate routes.

Neale said crews will be working around the clock, seven days a week, to complete the work as quickly as possible.

The $800,000 project is expected to be complete before the end of September.