Bridge to close again

The Andrews Avenue drawbridge in downtown Fort Lauderdale will be closed again overnight today and Monday for more repairs, city officials said.

A malfunctioning traffic barrier on the north side of the bridge received emergency repairs Aug. 28 but the job was not completed.

The barrier blocks vehicles from crossing the bridge when it is being opened for boating traffic on the New River, said Anh Ton, director of the city’s Highway and Bridge Maintenance Division.

“We’re repairing the barriers that come out of the ground to keep motorists from entering the restricted area when the bridge is in the up position,” he said.

The repair work will begin about 10 p.m. and will be done by 6 a.m. each following morning, barring any weather delays or unforeseen obstacles, he said.

During the repair, Andrews Avenue will be closed to vehicular traffic between East Las Olas Boulevard and Southwest Fifth Street but pedestrian and boat traffic will not be affected.

Drivers will be detoured to the Southeast Third Avenue drawbridge.

Signs will be posted on Andrews Avenue to warn motorists of the bridge closure.

An overhaul of the Andrews Avenue drawbridge began July 30 and is scheduled to last until 2020. Its 37-year-old machinery is nearing the end of its life, traffic engineers said.