Anyone planning an overnight road trip through Northampton within the next week should begin preparations to take a detour.
The Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) has announced it will conduct overnight bridge repairs on Interstate 91 near exit 23 in Northampton, requiring temporary closures and detours. The northbound lanes will be closed from 8 p.m. to 4 a.m. on Sunday through Tuesday. Southbound closures will follow on Wednesday through Sunday. during the same hours.
Northbound traffic will be detoured at exit 23, directed onto Route 5/10 northbound through Northampton, and rejoin I-91 at exit 26. Vehicles taller than 11 feet needing to access Route 9 eastbound to Hadley will take Damon Road.
For southbound closures, traffic will exit at interchange 26, follow Route 5/10 southbound, and re-enter I-91 at exit 23, with Damon Road serving as an alternate route for Route 9 eastbound access.
The closure is part of a $56 million project, begun in summer 2021, to replace both the northbound and then the southbound bridges over both Route 5/ Mount Tom Road and Hockanum Road, as well as to build a new 5-foot wide sidewalk that is extending along Mount Tom Road to Atwood Drive, the complex of medical and office building. The sidewalk previously ended just south of Spare Time Northampton, 525 Pleasant St. at the Connecticut River levee.
