Busy route closed in Trumbull County for bridge demo

HOWLAND, Ohio (WKBN) – Traffic headaches remain as a major state route in Trumbull County is closed, albeit briefly.

The state Route 82 Eastbound bridge structure over state Route 46 in Howland is gone and crews continue working to clean up the debris. State Route 46 in the area of the Diverging Diamond Interchange Project is closed in both directions until Thursday morning which is not only affecting traffic patterns but business owners as well.

“It’s slowed down the business a lot,” said Tressa Marks of Psychic Readings by Tressa.

Marks’ business has been located near the interchange for more than a decade. Even though the short-term closure has slowed things down for her, she thinks the Diverging Diamond Interchange Project as a whole will be a good thing once it’s complete.

“It’s going to be amazing,” said Marks. “It’s going to help out with the car accidents and stuff that we have out here. I mean it’s going to be ten times more better for all our businesses out here.”

ODOT District Four Spokesman Justin Chesnic says an average of 30,000 vehicles travel on State Route 46. While it’s closed, drivers are seeking alternate routes, causing backups on local streets including Howland Wilson Road. During the closure, Chesnic is encouraging people to follow the detour, which may seem long, but is designed to handle the increased traffic.

“If you stick to that detour, yes a little bit of a longer road mileage-wise, but you’ll be able to get around much quicker,” he said.

Chesnic says the Eastbound bridge structure is expected to be rebuilt by the end of the year. The focus in 2025 will be on State Route 46.

“Where we’re going to actually construct the Diverging Diamond Interchange there–that’ll take the better part of 2025 into 2026 a little bit,” said Chesnic. “And you’ll have some various lane restrictions down on 46 next year.”

State Route 46 will reopen at 8 a.m. Thursday.

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