TRAFFIC ALERT: I-10 west to be reduced to 2 lanes downtown until mid-August

The Texas Department of Transportation Wednesday announced I-10 West will be reduced to two lanes through downtown beginning at 6 a.m. on July 26, 2018.

TxDOT said the change is being made for safety reasons after a fiery wreck involving a tractor trailer damaged the Stanton utility bridge over I-10 west near Mesa.

“(We) want to prevent potential further damage. If a vehicle hits the concrete traffic barrier currently in place, the impact could compromise the tower,” said TxDOT El Paso District Engineer Bob Bielek.

To make the change, I-10 westbound will be closed at the downtown Mesa exit tonight from 9 p.m.-6 a.m. Traffic will exit Mesa, and get back on I-10 at Yandell. Traffic will begin to taper at Cotton. Once the interstate opens Thursday morning, the far right lane will remain closed until permanent repairs are complete in mid August.

The permanent fix, projected to start on August 15, will include overnight closures on Wednesday and Thursday nights and a continuous weekend closure.

TxDOT said that once utilities are rerouted, it will demolish the two existing beams over the westbound roadway, place the new beams, and reinstall the utilities.

Drivers will experience intermittent closures on Yandell and Mesa for utility work beginning tonight.

“As we work toward the permanent solution for the Utility Bridge, we ask drivers to use alternate routes into downtown, be patient and allow for extra travel time,” said Bielek, “By this time next year, we expect to have another alternate route for drivers to use during incidents such as we are now experiencing with completion of our Border West Expressway project.”