27th Street Bridge Closes Next Week

Interstate 94 project map. Wisconsin Department of Transportation.

The 27th Street Bridge spanning the Menomonee Valley will be closed Feb. 2 for construction.

The critical north-south artery will be closed “long-term” as part of the $1.75 billion reconstruction of Interstate 94 and not reopen until late 2026, according to the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT). The reconstruction will add new sidewalks and bike lanes running in both directions on the bridge.

The bridge will close to traffic at 6 a.m. Monday. Traffic will be detoured along 35th Street between W. Wisconsin and W. Greenfield avenues.

At 9 a.m. Feb. 2, WisDOT will also close the Interstate 94 eastbound exit at the intersection of N. 26th Street and W. St. Paul Avenue. The exit will be closed through the summer, according to WisDOT.

East of the 27th Street Bridge, the James E. Groppi Unity Bridge (16th Street Bridge) is already closed. The bridge will remain closed until April, according to the City of Milwaukee Department of Public Works.

WisDOT is also planning to reconstruct the 35th Street Bridge. That project will not begin until the 27th Street Bridge is completed and reopened to the public.

The bridge is the latest major right-of-way to close for the freeway project. A segment of Hawley Road was recently closed until 2028.

The 3.5-mile project will rebuild the freeway from N. 16th to N. 70th Street and completely replace the Stadium Interchange. The six-lane roadway will be expanded to eight lanes. WisDOT expects construction to last until 2033. In late 2025, WisDOT broke ground on the widening project with the “West Leg Segment” stretching from Zablocki Drive, just west of American Family Field, to N. 70th Street.

More information on construction timing is available on WisDOT’s I-94 East-West project website.

PurpleLine Detour

The Milwaukee County Transit System (MCTS) PurpleLine currently runs north and south along 27th Street.

With the 16th Street Bridge also closed, the route will be detoured along W. Canal Street to S. 13th Street and 6th Street between W. Clybourn Street and W. National Avenue.

The system has announced that 11 bus stops will be temporarily closed as a result of the project. MCTS has published a full list of the stops, as well as temporary replacements.

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