Popp’s Ferry Bridge closure, Scrapin’ cones will bring traffic woes this week in Biloxi
Update: The bridge repairs were completed and the bridge reopened shortly after 2 p.m. Thursday.
Those who don’t know their way around Biloxi should plan to find a way around the traffic issues likely coming this week to Biloxi.
On Thursday, the Popp’s Ferry Bridge will be closed from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Detour signs will be in place.
The same company that is working on repairs to the Fort Bayou Bridge in Ocean Springs is sending a crew to see if they can do some repairs in Biloxi, said Mike Leonard, the city’s chief administrative officer.
“Hate to shut the bridge down,” he said at Tuesday’s Biloxi Council meeting.
The repairs are designed to extend the time between failures, when the bridge is stuck open, he said. That happens regularly and backs up traffic on both sides of the bridge.
Scrapin’ and the orange cones
While the repairs are made to the bridge Thursday, city crews will be preparing for Scrapin’ the Coast from Friday through Sunday, June 25-27.
While most of the events are at the Mississippi Coast Coliseum, spectators sit along U.S. 90 to watch the low-rider cars and trucks roll by.
“It’s going to be heavy traffic,” said Councilman Paul Tisdale, who arranged for residents of neighborhoods along U.S. 90 to get passes so they can turn off the highway.
Other traffic will have to stay on 90, which will be limited to one lane in each direction during the peak traffic times, with a lane in each direction reserved for emergency vehicles.
Orange cones will be set out to designate the traffic patterns.
Plans for Popps Ferry bridge
Mayor Andrew “FoFo” Gilich and others from the city recently traveled to Washington, D.C., and met with members of the Coast delegation about the bridge concerns.
“We came in force,” Gilich said, to ask for money to replace the bridge that was completed in 1979 and is 42 years old.
The drawbridge is on a hurricane evacuation route, and 20,000 vehicles cross it each day. It opens many times as boats are moved to safer harbor during storms, while drivers are trying to head north.
The city has proposed a high-rise bridge that won’t need a draw to be opened, but it will cost millions to build.
This story was originally published June 23, 2021 at 5:50 AM.
