An Omaha bridge project is wrapping up sooner than expected and will reopen this week.
Omaha Mayor John Ewing announced Thursday that the Farnam Street Bridge will officially reopen to traffic by 3 p.m. Friday.
A press release stated the reopening represents an important milestone for the Omaha Streetcar project and downtown mobility. Since its January kickoff, lead contractor Hawkins Construction completed the full teardown and rebuild in just nine months, sooner than expected.
“Completing this bridge early is a huge win for Omaha,” Ewing said in the press release. “I’m grateful to the crews who worked hard to get this done early and keep our city moving forward. By aligning our streetcar progress with the state’s long-term I-480 bridge reconstruction plans, we’ve delivered two stronger, modern bridges years earlier than the state’s schedule.”
With the completion of the Farnam Bridge and following the reopening of the Harney Street Bridge in November 2025, interstate drivers will also see immediate changes. Final traffic configurations are now restored on I-480 underneath, eliminating the temporary lane shifts and construction cones required during overhead work.
The new bridge also features an expanded pedestrian area designed to accommodate a future bikeway, alongside space for upcoming streetcar tracks. While rail installation will occur at a later date, vehicle and pedestrian traffic across the bridge will remain open throughout that phase.