CITYnews halifax : MacKay bridge closing for maintenance this weekend

CITYnews halifax / By Mark Hodgins

Drivers looking to get across the Halifax harbour will have to find an option other than the MacKay bridge this weekend.

The cross-harbour span will be closing for maintenance work from Friday night at 9 p.m. until Monday at 5:30 a.m., according to Halifax Harbour Bridges (HHB).

Friday night’s closure will be later than usual, as HHB is working to accommodate higher traffic levels expected in Halifax.

“There’s the FIFA watch party and just always something going on in Halifax,” said HHB’s Steven Proctor. “The watch party could have 10,000 people, and it’ll end at 6 p.m., so hopefully they’ll be on their way home or enjoying the downtown by the time we close.”

Proctor says ferry service will be free over the weekend, with the bridge commission covering the cost.

As for the bridge itself, Proctor says this weekend’s work will be checking in on lower parts of the bridge to see how it is holding up, which will require removal of the north lane of the deck.