VALLEY VIEW, Ohio — Drivers who use the I-480 Valley View Bridge near the I-77 interchange can expect faster, more consistent driving times.
After six years of work, officials from the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) held a ceremonial ribbon cutting Monday to celebrate the opening of the I-480 Valley View Express Lane Bridge.
Last week, access to the new bridge in the westbound direction was officially opened. By next Monday, eastbound traffic will also have access to the center bridge.
So what will change as a result of the express lane bridge? The new center bridge will help lessen the traffic at interchanges during rush hour traffic by carrying two lanes in each direction. Westbound traffic will be able to bypass the I-77 interchange, while eastbound traffic can bypass the Transportation Boulevard exit. The center bridge will be able to provide a detour if there is a crash on one of the mainline bridges and will also allow for easy maintenance on the bridges in the future.
"It means a safer commute,” explained ODOT Director Jack Marchbanks. “It means a safer route from the east to the west and it means more people to be able to get through this particular valley over the top of it with of course, safety being the number one concern."
The Valley View Bridge is the busiest in the state of Ohio, according to ODOT, carrying an average of 180,000 vehicles a day during peak times. Originally constructed in the 1970s, the driving surfaces on the original two bridges were over 40 years old and had reached the end of their lifespan.
Work on the estimated $227 million project began in December 2017.
In the fall of 2020, the new 4,150 ft. center bridge was completed by Walsh Construction Company.
The new driving surface for the I-480 eastbound bridge was completed in 2021 and the westbound bridge was completed in 2022. Operations to prepare the new bridge to carry two-way traffic began in fall 2022 and are nearing completion.
The project has taken six years to complete because it was no easy feat building a new, 4,150-foot center bridge in between two already standing bridges that had been there since the 1970’s.
"You're talking about a massive bridge,” said ODOT Director Jack Marchbanks. “You're talking about the fourth largest project in ODOT history."
Walsh Construction Program Manager Joel Halterman explained that they had to build massive pieces of road on the ground before elevating them into place between the outer bridges. "We would pre-assemble those on the ground and they were over 100 yards long – so the length of a football field – and we had three cranes that would pick them up and carry them in unison, one piece as long as a football field all at one time," he said.
ODOT says minor pavement work and painting will continue on the bridge through June 2024 with minimal impacts to traffic.
“Ohio’s economy is on the move, and this project will help ensure efficient movement of people, goods, and services in northeast Ohio,” said Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine in a statement. “Above all, this project improves safety on a busy stretch of highway that all too often sees heavy congestion.”