Repair work expected to snarl Sacramento interstate traffic over the weekend

Ongoing, intermittent repair work on the Rio Vista Bridge could lead to major backups and numerous detours for drivers on Highway 12, Interstate 5, Interstate 80 and surrounding roads this weekend and beyond, Caltrans said.

The drawbridge, which separates Solano County from south Sacramento County, is closed through 2 p.m. Friday and will again be shut down from 4 p.m. Saturday until 6 a.m. Sunday, according to a news release by Caltrans.

Beyond the weekend, it’ll also be closed from 7 p.m. Tuesday through 6 a.m. Wednesday, the news release said.

Another stretch of Highway 12, between Highway 160 and I-5, will also be closed from 10 p.m. Friday until 5 a.m. Monday because of a rehab project at Bouldin Island.

Caltrans has provided a map showing alternate routes for those used to crossing the Sacramento River using the bridge.

As a result of the two projects, “serious delays” are expected on those days, Caltrans says.

Spillover effects onto I-5, combined with another major roadwork project by Caltrans on the major freeway, could lead to major traffic congestion in the greater Sacramento area.

About 50 miles away from the bridge, Caltrans is performing additional night work at Richards Boulevard just north of downtown Sacramento, which will close multiple lanes of southbound I-5 this weekend.

The No. 3 and No. 4 (rightmost) southbound lanes were closed Thursday night through Friday morning, and will again be closed from 8 p.m. Saturday until 4 a.m. Sunday.

The No. 1 and No. 2 (leftmost) southbound lanes on the same stretch will be closed 9 p.m. Friday until 9 a.m. Saturday and 7 p.m. Sunday until 4 a.m. Monday, but the onramps and offramps at Richards Boulevard will remain open that night.

Closures ending at 9 a.m. were originally scheduled to end at 4 a.m. Saturday and Sunday, but were extended five hours, according to a Friday afternoon update by Caltrans.

Emergency work was necessitated after large potholes damaged about two dozen vehicles on I-5 the morning of Aug. 30.

The mechanism that raises and lowers the Rio Vista Bridge has been damaged since Aug. 9. Repair work has forced closures of the bridge off and on since then.

A 45-mile stretch of I-5 north of Redding will also be closed through at least Sunday due to the 25,000-acre Delta Fire, Caltrans said Friday afternoon. There is currently no timeline for reopening that stretch.

This story was originally published September 7, 2018 at 12:13 PM.