Danbury Warns About Saturday I-84 Closure

When New York State closes I-84 at Dingle Ridge Road on Saturday at 5 p.m., Danbury is asking drivers to stay away from the area.

"This time they're closing the eastbound lanes, so if someone is going into New York, they'll be waiting a long time to come back," said Danbury Mayor Mark Boughton. "It's going to be hard for people to come here and shop if they have to cross the border."

New York State will close I-84 eastbound on the night and morning of Oct. 19 and Oct. 20 to replace a bridge on the highway over Dingle Ridge Road. This will be the second time a lane of I-84 was closed in a month. New York closed I-84 westbound at the same location in late September to replace that bridge. 

"It's going to be the same process," Boughton said. "It worked well and I hope it goes well this time and they get it done quickly."

Danbury and New York will set up detours around the closed highway in the area of Saw Mill Road, but Boughton is asking drivers to avoid the area this weekend.

"All eastbound I-84 traffic will be detoured onto Route 6 at Exit 20 in the Town of Southeast in NY and directed back onto I-84 at Exit 1 in the City of Danbury, CT," the New York State Department of Transportation wrote on a card to local residents warning of delays.

Workers have build a replacement bridge next to the existing bridge on I-84 where it crosses Dingle Ridge Road. On Saturday, workers will close the highway, demolish the existing bridge and slide the new bridge into place. They attach it and pave it, and the process is scheduled to take something like 18 hours.