Repaving work progressing, I-80 set to reopen on schedule in East Bay Monday, Caltrans says

HERCULES, Calif. (KGO) -- In the East Bay, Caltrans says a major weekend repaving project on Interstate 80 is on schedule and is on track to reopen by 5 a.m. Monday. Eastbound I-80 is shut down between Highway 4 in Hercules and Cummings Skyway in Crockett.

"It's a lot but it has to be done," said Sharon Bolton.

UPDATE: Eastbound I-80 reopens ahead of schedule in East Bay, CHP says

Bolton from Hercules is trying to avoid driving on I-80 this weekend, where there's a closure and detours in place.

"I saw the signs on the freeway. I had people text me about it, but I'm stuck. I don't have a choice," Bolton said.

RELATED: What to know about eastbound I-80 closure between Hwy 4 and Cummings Skyway

Caltrans crews have been replacing three miles of pavement on eastbound I-80 with reinforced concrete. The new pavement was poured Sunday morning. Officials say it's seamless with no joints.

"And because there's no joints, we're looking at a possible 40-year lifespan of work we're doing right now," said Caltrans spokesperson Bart Ney.

The I-80 closure started Friday night.

Some of the detours were slow going on Sunday and drivers were trying to keep their cool.

MORE: Pothole damage to your vehicle? Caltrans program may reimburse you up to $10,000

The Ramirez Family from Sacramento missed the warning signs.

"Because of the closure, we ended up spending the night at my mom's, because I have a baby. and he started to fuss. It wasn't worth it," said Monica Ramirez.

Caltrans says many drivers avoided the area.

"Basically traffic has gone down 50% that allowed us really be successful on this job," Ney said.

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Caltrans says it takes a whole weekend to repave one three-mile lane of traffic, and there's more repaving to come. Two additional lanes will be upgraded the weekends of Aug. 4 and Aug. 18.

After that, Caltrans plans a four-day closure over Labor Day weekend to repave westbound lanes. That closure will impact the westbound Carquinez Bridge.

"So by doing this work, we take 106 nights of closures down to four weekends," Ney said.

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