Staples High School Senior Prom-goers have already been warned. Now you are too:
Stay away from Stamford on I-95 this weekend, and next.
Replacement of the Post Road bridge over Exit 9 will cause chaos for motorists on that heavily trafficked highway. It will affect all of downtown Stamford, and probably the Merritt Parkway as well.
The project begins at 6 p.m. on Friday, May 31, at Exit 9. All traffic will be rerouted through local streets. I-95 is expected to be reopened by 5 a.m. Monday, June 3rd. The same schedule is in effect Friday, June 7 through Monday, June 10.
Staples’ prom is affected because it’s at the Stamford Marriott. Many students take party buses and stretch limos to and from the event — vehicles that are not allowed on the Merritt — so transportation could be a major headache.
It will be tough for everyone traveling in Fairfield County that weekend too. But a bridge replacement is a lot better than the Mianus collapse in 1983.
(Hat tip: Bob Mitchell)
You’d think everything had started already. Traffic all through to any entrance or exit of the Merritt has been very heavy. I think there was an accident between 41 and 42. The usual heavy commuter traffic is even heavier; nerves are frayed, and a few people are not showing any patience at all, jeopardizing the safety of a person like me, trying to turn onto my street and barely seeing someone in such a hurry they could have hurt me, and then they just passed me in more of a hurry, near a parked car, making the end of my journey not very pleasant. I started out at 4:30 heading towards Weston, and already the traffic was bad coming from there toward Westport. We need to work on some solutions to this kind of thing. I can’t imagine how it will be tomorrow!
I think people are underestimating the extent of the traffic we are likely to see. I’m betting on effects from West Chester to New Haven to Danbury on all highways, with bumper to bumper highways and local road delays in Westport. Not planning to go anywhere either weekend.