Flyover ramp to be demolished this weekend

Construction begins Saturday at 6 a.m., traffic won't be allowed in area

MIAMIConstruction crews begin demolishing an out-of-service flyover ramp connecting I-595 to the southbound lanes of Florida's Turnpike on Saturday.

Construction starts Saturday at 6 a.m. and traffic won't be allowed in the area.

Drivers are already using the new ramp used to connect Westbound I-595 to the Southbound Turnpike, so it is now time to get rid of the old one.

Crews shut down the old ramp two weeks ago. A contractor, who specializes in bridge demolition, has been brought in to do the job.

The old ramp sits right above the Turnpike so traffic on the Turnpike is going to be affected this weekend.

In fact, Northbound is going to be shut down all together between 5 p.m. Saturday and 1 p.m. Sunday. It is not safe to have cars traveling under all that heavy construction work.

VIEW: Florida's Turnpike closures

Project Manager Paul Lampley told Local 10's Roger Lohse it won't be a "Made for TV"-type of demolition.

"It's a steel girder bridge, so they'll be demolishing the concrete deck and taking down the steel beams one by one," explained Lampley. "It will be a slow process. They'll be using specialized equipment to to the demolition."

"We will be putting some fill down on the surface of the Turnpike, so with all that concrete falling, we won't damage the riding surface of the Turnpike," added Lampley.

Be sure to check traffic and road conditions before heading out this weekend.