Work that will require closing all but one lane of the Interstate 430 bridge between Little Rock and North Little Rock and scheduled to occur this weekend has been postponed again because of an unfavorable weather forecast, the Arkansas Department of Transportation said.
The postponement was the third successive one to disrupt work on the $81 million project to improve the I-430/Cantrell Road interchange.
Ice and snow prompted postponing work during the past two weekends. Rain is forecast for the weekend, primarily beginning Saturday night and lasting well into Sunday night, according to the National Weather Service's North Little Rock office.
The department said a new date hasn't been determined but will be announced as soon as possible.
The operation will involve closing all southbound lanes between Cantrell Road, also called Arkansas 10, in Little Rock and Interstate 40 in North Little Rock and all northbound lanes between North Rodney Parham and Cantrell roads.
Any northbound traffic on I-430 north of I-630 will have to exit at Rodney Parham Road and divert to a detour leading to Cantrell Road, where traffic may re-enter I-430 northbound. A single northbound lane across the Arkansas River Bridge on I-430 will be open during the closing period.
Northbound I-430 traffic will be redirected through city streets, including residential and small-business-lined roads. The detour route will be North Rodney Parham to Pleasant Valley Drive and then to Cantrell Road just east of the interstate.
According to the Transportation Department, truck traffic will not be permitted on the detour route and will be redirected to Interstate 30 and Interstate 440.
Limiting traffic around the interchange will allow the contractor, Kiewit Infrastructure South Inc. of Fort Worth, to erect structural beams and install safety platforms in and around the interchange.
Using a single weekend to do the work will minimize the number of overnight lane closings required and reduce the risk of crashes for drivers as well as construction workers, the department said.