Cambridge-Bound Longfellow Detour Starts July 20

The Massachusetts Department of Transportation announced Tuesday that a closure of one lane of the Longfellow Bridge and subsequent detour will go into effect July 20.

A picture of the map of what the detour will look like as crews work to rehabilitate the bridge is attached to this article and can be viewed above.

According to MassDOT, major construction activity on the bridge is scheduled to begin July 20 for the project slated to last three-and-a-half years.

The current Cambridge-bound lane of traffic will be used for traffic heading into Boston starting July 20. The current Boston-bound lane will be shut down.

As a result, Cambridge-bound traffic "will be detoured using a signed route from Charles Circle to Land Boulevard using Leverett Circle and Monsignor O’Brien Highway" until September 2014.

"Subsequent to September 2014, the Boston-bound travel lane will shift its position on the bridge while keeping the Cambridge-bound detour in place," MassDOT said in a statement.

MassDOT said MBTA Red Line service in both directions, emergency response, pedestrian and bicycle access will remain in place during construction.

This project "will rehabilitate the iconic “Salt and Pepper” Bridge to improve structural integrity and capacity, meet modern codes (including ADA accessibility), and create a safer configuration for all bridge users" according to MassDOT.

A public information session on the Longfellow Bridge rehab project will take place Wednesday at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, 45 Carleton St., Building E 25, Room 111 from 7 to 9 p.m.