Part of 401 to close in both directions in Oshawa, Ontario

Oshawa and other residents who take the 401 later in the evening will have to choose an alternate route for one night next month due to construction.

Today, the City of Oshawa announced that the Ministry of Transportation is replacing the Simcoe Street South and Albert Street overpass structures along the 401 and will have to temporarily close the highway in both directions from Simcoe Street to Drew Street to demolish the bridge on the existing Simcoe Street underpass.

The closure will begin at 11 p.m. on Saturday, May 11 and last until 7 a.m. on Sunday, May 12. Some lane closures will start at 9 p.m. on May 11, and the highway is expected to fully reopen by 9 a.m. on May 12.

In a news release, the city says detour routes will be created to divert traffic around the closed portion of the highway. The routes are:

• Eastbound Traffic on Highway 401: All lanes of traffic will exit at the Simcoe St. off-ramp and follow Bloor Street eastbound until reaching the next available Highway 401 on-ramp located west of Fourth Avenue.
• Westbound Traffic on Highway 401: All lanes of traffic will exit at the Drew Street off-ramp, proceed north to the intersection of First Avenue and Drew Street, and then follow First Avenue westbound to Simcoe Street. From there, traffic will travel southbound towards the Simcoe Street on-ramp to access the westbound 401.

The city also says the following roads will be closed, with access limited to local traffic:

• Simcoe Street South: Closed from 150m north of Lviv Blvd. to Bloor St. East/West.
• Albert Street: Closed from Third Ave. to Bloor St. East/West.
• Front Street: Closed from Third Ave to Lviv Blvd.
• Lviv Boulevard: Closed from Simcoe St. to Front St.

The city says the upcoming closures will be announced on signage in the area.