U.S. 6/State Road 51 bridge work over I-94 moving into construction phase in Lake County

LAKE COUNTY, Ind. – Indiana Department of Transportation contractor F.H. Paschen, S.N. Nielsen & Associates LLC will be moving into bridge demolition and reconstruction of the southbound U.S. 6/State Road 51 bridge over I-94.

I-94 eastbound and westbound will have overnight lane closures in this area during the hours of 7 p.m. to 5 a.m. for approximately three nights beginning Tuesday, August 5 to address conflicting overhead signage for the upcoming bridge work at U.S. 6/State Road 51. Additional overnight lane closures will take place Monday, August 11 and Tuesday, August 12.

U.S. 6/State Road 51 will have alternating lane closures and changing traffic patterns for approximately three days beginning Tuesday, August 5 to prepare for bridge demolition and construction over I-94.

Beginning on or around Friday, August 8, U.S. 6/State Road 51 will be in a new traffic pattern. The southbound bridge will be closed for demolition and reconstruction first. The northbound side will be converted to two-way traffic, with southbound traffic utilizing crossovers.

Two traffic signals have been installed on U.S. 6/State Road 51 to facilitate both short-term and long-term changes in traffic patterns at this interchange. The current ramp closure of eastbound I-94 to southbound U.S. 6/State Road 51 (Exit 15A) is scheduled to reopen Wednesday, August 6. That ramp has been realigned to meet at one of the newly installed traffic signal. Other temporary ramp realignments are in place to facilitate construction traffic patterns.

All four loop ramps at this interchange are scheduled to close Thursday, August 7:

• I-94 eastbound to U.S. 6/State Road 51 northbound (permanent closure)
  • New traffic pattern: I-94 eastbound traffic will now exit at 15A and use the newly installed traffic signal to turn left or right onto U.S. 6/State Road 51.
• I-94 westbound to U.S. 6/State Road 51 southbound (permanent closure)
  • New traffic pattern: I-94 westbound traffic will now exit at 15B and use the newly installed traffic signal to turn left or right onto U.S. 6/State Road 51.
• U.S. 6/State Road 51 northbound to I-94 westbound (temporary closure during construction)
  • Detour: Take ramp from U.S. 6/State Road 51 northbound to I-94 eastbound, continue to State Road 249 and use interchange ramps to turn around and access I-94 westbound.
• U.S. 6/State Road 51 southbound to I-94 eastbound (temporary closure during construction)
  • ​​​​​​​Detour: Use newly installed traffic signal and ramp alignment south of the bridge over I-94 to turn left onto ramp to eastbound I-94.

Schedules are weather dependent and subject to change. Additional impacts to traffic are planned as bridge demolition and construction activities take place and will be communicated in advance. Construction on the southbound bridge is expected to be ongoing through mid-December, 2025. Work on the northbound bridge will occur in 2026.

INDOT encourages drivers to allow extra time when driving through this area and follow traffic directions carefully. Motorists should slow down, exercise caution and drive distraction-free through all work zones.