Detour ahead: Stretches of 836 to shut down for toll work

Drivers who travel on the eastern stretch of State Road 836/Dolphin Expressway might consider staying clear of it later this week when the start of its conversion to a fully electronic toll road will close parts of it.

Starting Wednesday and for five days, workers will close westbound and eastbound stretches of the expressway between Interstate 95 and Northwest 27th Avenue.

In most cases, the shutdowns will be overnight while tolling gantries are installed. But at other times, traffic will be routed away from the stretch during part of the rush hour and for one entire weekend.

The closings will allow workers to install equipment for the Miami-Dade Expressway Authority to launch electronic toll collection along the length of the road in both directions. Mario Diaz, an MDX spokesman, said the agency expects to “go live” with so-called open-road tolling in mid- to late November.

Until now, only certain portions of 836 have been tolled. For example, most of the westbound stretch from I-95 to just west of Northwest 97th Avenue is untolled.

The first closings will take place in the westbound lanes on Wednesday and Thursday from 9 p.m. to 7 a.m. each day.

The same area will be closed from 11 p.m. Friday through 5 a.m. Monday, Oct. 20, MDX said. Only emergency vehicles will be permitted in the area, which leads to Jackson Memorial and University of Miami hospitals in Miami’s health district.

Eastbound closings between Northwest 27th Avenue/Unity Boulevard and Northwest 12th Avenue will begin at 10 p.m. Saturday and end at 8 a.m. Sunday. The shutdown will resume at 10 p.m. Sunday and end 5 a.m. Monday, Oct. 20.

If it rains, the work and the road closings could be delayed.

This story was originally published October 12, 2014 at 12:31 PM with the headline "Detour ahead: Stretches of 836 to shut down for toll work."