'Behind The Cones' At ODOT's Bird Creek Bridge Project

The project to replace the Bird Creek bridges on Highway 169 is approaching another milestone.

The contractor, Becco Contractors, is about to finish the brand new southbound lanes of the highway. Once that happens, probably near the end of May, Phase 4 will begin and ODOT will move all traffic onto the new southbound lanes. A contractor will then implode the box truss bridge that originally carried the northbound lanes over Bird Creek.

The $45 million project began in July 2015 and includes replacing eight bridges that carry highway 169 over 56th Street North, Bird Creek and two Bird Creek overflow areas.

9/11/2015: Related Story: Rebuilding Highway 169 At Bird Creek: ODOT Explains How

When it's finished, the new stretch of highway will be three lanes in each direction all the way to the railroad bridge just south of Owasso, greatly reducing the bottlenecks that usually occur in the area in both morning and evening rush hours.

12/20/2015: Related Story: WATCH NOW: Bird Creek Bridge Implosion Near Owasso

A contractor imploded the box truss bridge that originally carried the southbound lanes over Bird Creek in December. 

ODOT says the project is on schedule and should be finished by early 2017.