A new shuttle bus service associated with this bridge replacement project will begin operations on January 9 at 5:00 am.The bus will accommodate 12 passengers and seven bicycles and is handicapped accessible.

The shuttle service will run daily from 5:00 am until 1:00 am seven days a week, leaving from Kittery on the hour and Portsmouth on the half-hour. The Kittery pickup location will be just north of Warren’s Restaurant on Water Street. The shuttle will be in Kittery at the top of every hour until 12:00 midnight (last scheduled pickup).

Beginning in Portsmouth at 5:30 am, the pickup location will be at the corner of Daniel Street and Bow Street.  The Portsmouth shuttle will leave at the bottom of the hour (i.e. 5:30, 6:30, etc.) until the final pickup is made at 12:30 am and dropping off in Kittery by 1:00 am.  The shuttle will then resume four hours later in Kittery.

A new Memorial Bridge project web site will be available later this week that will include a shuttle route map and full schedule.A toll free number will also be available for those who want to comment on the shuttle bus service.

Memorial Bridge lift operations will continue “on demand” for river traffic for the next few weeks.Electronic message boards are in place at the bridge advising pedestrians and bicyclists of the pending closure.The bridge was closed to motor vehicle traffic on July 27, 2011.

The Memorial Bridge project will replace the bridge that carries US 1 over the Piscataqua River between Portsmouth and Kittery.Archer Western Contractors, of Canton, Massachusetts is the general contractor for the $81.4 million project.An informational “Open House” on the project will be held on January 12, 2012 from 4:00 pm to 8:00 pm at the Portsmouth City Hall Council Chambers (1 Junkins Ave.).