I-291 Westbound Returns To Two Lanes

WINDSOR, CT — The one-lane bottleneck on Interstate 291 westbound is coming to an end.

The Connecticut Department of Transportation announced Thursday that westbound traffic over the Bissell Bridge is being restored to two lanes between Exit 2 in South Windsor and Exit 1D in Windsor.

The revised configuration will include two 12-foot-wide travel lanes, a four-foot right shoulder and a five-foot left shoulder, according to the state’s updated construction advisory.

CTDOT said the bridge will remain in its “original configuration of two lanes” through spring 2027. The agency warned that weather or unexpected construction issues could still alter the schedule.

READ MORE:

• Nearly 650 Girls Will See Women Run The Field
• Windsor Drivers Could Face Steeper Parking Fines
• A Ticket From This Windsor Store Won $100,000

The westbound side of the bridge had been limited to one 11-foot-wide lane since June 18. In September, construction shifted to the opposite side of the roadway, but traffic remained restricted to one lane.

As Patch previously reported, the earlier traffic plan called for the left-lane closure to become a right-lane closure. CTDOT’s latest advisory replaces that arrangement with two open travel lanes.

The change does not mean work on the bridge is finished.

The lane restrictions are part of a $16.874 million rehabilitation that includes paving, safety improvements, reconstruction of bridge joints and repairs to the bridge’s upper and lower structures.

McNamee Construction Corp. received the contract in May. The full project remains scheduled for completion Nov. 12, 2027.

For more Northern Connecticut news, follow Patch editor Jay Kenney.