PITTSFIELD, Mass.— The state Department of Transportation plans to begin construction on the structurally deficient Holmes Road bridge this year. 

The structure between Cooper Parkway and Pomeroy Avenue closed on Wednesday so that a signal can be installed for one-lane traffic beginning next week. 

"While the timeline for repairs is still being finalized, MassDOT aims to advertise this project for bids this summer, with construction set to begin later this year," John Goggin, MassDOT communications analyst, said via email on Wednesday. 

On Tuesday, the city notified residents that the bridge on Holmes Road, a well-traveled route, will be reduced to one lane indefinitely beginning March 2. 

Following a partial load rating analysis, MassDOT recommended that the city close the state-owned bridge with a plan to reopen it with an alternating one-way traffic pattern, Goggin reported. 

It's the third bridge in the Berkshires that's been downgraded in the past month: The Red Mills bridge in Clarksburg is set to be replaced with a temporary bridge, and the Park Street bridge in Adams has had weight restrictions placed on it.

Two years ago, a bridge farther down the road over the rail line on Holmes reopened after a partial closure since 2019 and a full closure of more than 60 days. 

The bridge over the Housatonic is identified as being structurally deficient by the state based on an inspection last October. Built in 1962, the 35-foot steel-and-concrete span has an overall condition of 4, or poor.