Be ready for another weekend closing of I-240, Poplar

They’re back. Those weekend road closures you’ve come to love return this weekend as the Tennessee Department of Transportation continues a bridge replacement project on Interstate 240.

Both the eastbound and westbound sides of I-240 will close from the flyover at the Interstate 40 junction to Tennessee 385. The closure will begin at 9 p.m. Friday, and the interstate will reopen at 6 a.m. Monday.

Additionally, the eastbound and westbound sides of Poplar Avenue in the area of the interstate will close during the same time period.

The closures will allow TDOT crews to demolish the existing eastbound bridge on Poplar over the interstate, according to a statement.

During the closures, traffic will be detoured around the north I-40 loop and the south I-240 loop. Additional closures will include the I-40 eastbound exits to White Station/Summer Avenue and Sam Cooper Boulevard. Walnut Grove and Park Avenue will be open, but access to I-240 will not be allowed.

Message boards will alert motorists to the closures and alternate routes.

A similar closure last weekend allowed TDOT crews to replace the westbound bridge over Poplar. TDOT tweeted a time-lapse video showing last weekend’s work.

The work is part of TDOT’s $54 million MemFix 4 project.

MemFix 4, expected to finish in June 2019, will replace deteriorating bridges — the two on Poplar as well as the ones along Park and the Norfolk Southern Railroad. The bridges were built in the late 1950s and early 1960s.

The Memfix 4 project uses the Accelerated Bridge Construction process, which does complete highway shutdowns for short periods to speed construction.