Beginning at 9 p.m. on May 30, the Texas Department of Transportation will begin a long-term closure for the bridge crossing I-35 on St. Johns Avenue. The closure comes as TxDOT demolishes half of the bridge on St. Johns Avenue over I-35 throughout the weekend. Workers are scheduled to demolish the second half of the bridge over the June 8 weekend. According to a TxDOT press release, all drivers on St. Johns Avenue must turn right onto the I-35 frontage roads and use the U-turns at US 183 or US 290 East to access St. Johns Avenue on the other side of I-35 throughout the reconstruction of the bridge. A temporary path across I-35 for bicyclists and pedestrians will be constructed. Reconstruction of the bridge is expected to last several months, according to TxDOT. Weather permitting, TxDOT officials expect the new bridge to open to traffic in late summer 2019. Drivers should expect to experience major delays through this stretch of I-35 as TxDOT reduces traffic to two lanes in both northbound and southbound directions beginning May 31 at 9 p.m. The lane reductions will last through Monday, June 3 at 5 a.m. Striping and barriers will assist drivers through the lane shifts, according to TxDOT. Additionally, entrance and exit ramps near the demolition site will be closed. The northbound entrance ramp north of US 290 East will be closed along with the northbound exit ramp to Rundberg Lane just north of US 183. Southbound drivers will not be able to access the entrance ramp south of Rundberg Lane, and the southbound US 183 to southbound I-35 flyover will be closed as well. TxDOT officials encourage motorists to seek alternate routes throughout the weekend lane closures. Two more lane closures are scheduled throughout the month of June. Community Impact Newspaper will provide updates on lane closures as information becomes available.