Starting Friday, expect delays for westbound traffic on 23rd Street between Haskell and Learnard

Westbound motorists on East 23rd Street should expect delays until early next week.

Beginning Friday, westbound traffic on the 23rd Street Bridge — which is between Haskell and Learnard — will be limited to one lane. City crews will be repairing a hole that developed in the deck of the bridge. The reduced traffic flow on the bridge likely will continue through Tuesday, which is when the concrete for the patch is expected to have cured.

Both lanes of eastbound traffic will remain open on the bridge. City officials also sought to assure motorists that the bridge was in no danger of collapsing. But the hole in the deck does highlight the need to replace the bridge. The Kansas Department of Transportation is scheduled to take down the bridge and build a new one next year.