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PORTLAND, Ore. — A stretch of Interstate 84 will be closed in both directions near Interstate 205 this weekend for TriMet construction of a MAX light rail bridge. 

The closure starts at 10 p.m. Friday and will last until 4 a.m. Monday. I-205 will be the primary detour for drivers. 

The westbound detour is fairly straight forward; the eastbound detour will require drivers take I-205 southbound, then use one of the very next exits to return northbound on I-205 to the I-84 eastbound exit.

"Once this part of the project is complete, it will essentially look like there’s a new bridge, and that’s an important part of the larger Better Red Project,” said Tyler Graf with TriMet.

TriMet’s Better Red Project is a four-year, $215 million plan to extend MAX Red Line service to 10 additional stops on the westside from Beaverton to Hillsboro.  

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Improvements on the eastside include a second set of tracks near Portland International Airport and Gateway Transit Center in addition to two new light rail bridges near the transit center. 

Starting this weekend, TriMet will be securing 650 tons of steel with more than 13,000 bolts to set the first of those two bridges near the Gateway Transit Center.

"We’ll be able to help trains move around each other more efficiently. Especially with the Red Line, that’ll have trickle down effects throughout the entire system," said Graf.

A short section of the Max Blue Line will also be disrupted this weekend. 

"For that project, we will be running shuttle buses between the Gateway Transit Center and 122nd Ave," said Graf.  MAX trains will run on 20-minute intervals, systemwide.

TriMet had a similar closure in June that only impacted westbound I-84. During that closure, there were bottlenecks at the I-84-I-205 interchange. 

According to the Oregon Department of Transportation, about 55,000 cars a day flow each direction through the closure area. The weekend closure will limit the impact, but drivers should be prepared.

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Chris McGinness is a meteorologist and reporter for KGW. Got a story idea or a great photo you want to share? Email him at cmcginness@kgw.com or reach out on Facebook , Twitter and Instagram

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