TxDOT and Harbor Bridge crews will have 36 hours to lower the center span of the old bridge onto a barge requiring a full closure of the ship channel.

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — The clock is ticking toward the lowering of the old Harbor Bridge’s center span.

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While TxDOT hasn’t released a firm timeline on when that massive job will get underway, we do know it will briefly shut down ship traffic through the Port of Corpus Christi.

The Port of Corpus Christi is a major driver of the Texas economy and fuels the nation with massive tankers and barges moving through the Corpus Christi Ship Channel every day.

“We have about 8 vessels, and 12 barges that come underneath the bridge every day on average,” said Kyle Hogan, Chief Operating Officer for the Port.

But that flow of vessel traffic will come to a brief stop as crews prepare for one of the most complex parts of the Harbor Bridge dismantling.

TxDOT and Harbor Bridge crews will have roughly 36 hours to lower the old bridge’s nearly six-million-pound center span onto a barge below requiring a full closure of the ship channel.

“So, because we’ve been very transparent and open about the 36-hour closure, the agents and customers have had an opportunity to adjust their schedules, to make sure those vessels can account for that 36-hour closure, so it’s not everybody sitting at the same red light,” said Hogan.

Port officials compare the upcoming shutdown to a weather delay, something they deal with every year.

“You can use the example of sometimes in the spring we have fog events and weather events that limit ship traffic coming in and out.  We set up a cue, then once the weather lifts, we bring vessels in and out with minimal disruption or no disruption,” said Hogan.

The last significant closure of the Port was during 2017s Hurricane Harvey that lasted six days.

But Hogan said this time is different thanks to a level of planning for more than a year.

“We have a weekly update that we have ongoing even before I came onboard,” said Hogan. “And now that we are getting really close to executing the process of lowering the span. This collaborative and coordinated effort has come to a great place, where we are going to see everyone come together and do so with minimal interruption to commerce.”

The temporary disruption will result in a long-lasting strong future.  Once the old bridge is gone, it will allow bigger ships to pass through the channel.

The center span of the old bridge will be taken to Ingleside where parts will be recycled.