For those who travel the Jay Road, the trip is about to get longer. The Escambia County engineering department is already working on preparing the shoulder of Jay Road just off U.S. 41 where the soon-to-be-replaced bridge is located. Assistant County Engineer Brad Solomon said plans are to close the road for the bridge replacement work next week. “The plan right now is the close the road to traffic on Dec. 10,” Solomon said. “That is our scheduled date for closure with about a three month closure planned for the work to be completed.” Solomon said the replacement of the bridge is a contract job and will be completed by a company hired by the Escambia County officials. “This job will be under contract with a set amount of time planned for the project,” Solomon said. “We are looking about three months for construction time.” With the closure of the road, Solomon said officials have already made arrangements to mark a detour for traffic used to traveling down Jay Road. “Thomas Road will be a good detour for people who need to use Jay Road,” Solomon said. “The detour will be about five miles, but it’s a good road and shouldn’t create any problems.” Solomon said the detour will be marked leading up to the closure date for the bridge. Although the bridge has been open to traffic for some time, Solomon said a recent inspection has shown the bridge is ready to be replaced. “It’s getting pretty old and it’s structurally deficient,” Solomon said. “It’s just time to get that bridge replaced.” In addition to providing a safe way to travel along Jay Road, the replacement of the bridge could open doors to even more improvements along the county road. “This is the first step that needs to be taken to move ahead with getting the road paved,” Solomon said. “We don’t know when that might happen, but replacing the bridge is the first step toward getting the paving in order.”