While the closure of the Stroudwater Street bridge has caused some traffic problems, city officials, the Maine Turnpike Authority and even some residents who were against closing the bridge say things are turning out better than they expected.

By all accounts, the diverting of 8,000 to 10,000 cars a day from the bridge onto alternate routes in Westbrook has caused a headache for travelers but nothing more than was expected, and in some cases, the problems are even less than expected.

Traffic is heavier on several streets and tends to back up in the morning and evenings on Spring and Saco streets particularly, but the patterns have settled down and cars are moving relatively smoothly, according to Westbrook police and the Turnpike Authority.

Even some residents who were concerned that closing the bridge altogether would make unreasonable traffic problems have said they are pleased with the way things are going.

John Searles, a Westbrook resident who owns a business on Stroudwater Street, said that things are better than he thought they would be. “I think the plan is working,” said Searles, who spoke against closing the bridge. “Personally, as a resident, I’m pleased. All in all, my opinion is they did a tremendous job.”

Searles said he has not seen any change in his business-on the contrary, while the closure is an inconvenience for his customers, business has actually increased because he’s been running “bridge closure” sales. His only concern is that the signs on the affected streets are not clear enough to let drivers know that they can still get down to his business and the Stroudwater Christian Church.

Ida Stevens, who lives in Gorham and works at the church, said that it hasn’t affected the church in any major way. “It takes the people who work here longer to get to work, but that’s about it,” she said. “It’s not as bad as we thought it would be.”

When the issue was being decided, members of the church spoke out against a full closure, as did Searles. At that time, Westbrook officials and residents wanted to keep one lane open on the bridge and made that known to the Turnpike Authority.

The Authority wanted to close the bridge to shorten the construction time and reduce construction costs. The Authority relented to Westbrook’s wishes, but then Portland officials said they wanted to have the bridge closed. Acting on that request, the Turnpike Authority went back to its original plan to close the bridge.

“The city of Portland and residents of the Stroudwater area had concerns,” said Portland Director of Public Works Mike Bobinsky.

Those concerns included backups during morning and evening hours and pedestrian safety along the Portland side of the bridge, according to Bobinsky. Another concern was getting the construction done as quickly and inexpensively as possible.

Bobinsky said that public safety was not an issue because ambulances and fire trucks wouldn’t be using that corridor during emergencies because it would be unreliable with only one lane open.

Representatives from the Turnpike Authority and the city met recently at the Turnpike Authority offices in Portland to discuss how the project was going. “Everyone at the meeting felt that traffic has normalized and there are no major problems,” said Westbrook City Engineer Eric Dudley.

“As we expected, the first day that the bridge is closed is the worst day as people are trying to figure out alternate routes,” said Dan Paradee, spokesman for the Turnpike Authority. “I’ve had no calls are complaints since we closed the bridge. I’ve even heard from people who were adamantly against it saying it’s going very well.”

Westbrook Chief Paul McCarthy echoed this statement, saying that the backups on the first day after the bridge closing was influenced by a lane closure on County Road due to a hydrant repair project by the Portland Water District.

“It’s inconvenient for folks, (but) it’s not as bad we might have thought. While it’s slow because of the volume, cars are continuing to run and the roads are handling them,” said McCarthy. “The accident rate is pretty typical-nothing out of the ordinary. I’m sure when accidents do happen, the backups are more significant.”

Westbrook police have been monitoring the traffic flow and have adjusted the timing of lights at the intersections of William Clark Drive and Stroudwater, Spring, and Saco streets, as well as the intersection of Saco and New Gorham streets. A temporary stop sign has been erected on the northbound Stroudwater Street at its intersection of Forest Street and will remain during the duration of the project.

Paradee said the project is on schedule and the contractor is working to get it done before the mid-November deadline. He said that it’s a tight deadline without a whole lot of leeway, but the contract has incentives for finishing in mid to late October, which the contractor is confident of doing.

The old Stroudwater Street bridge has been demolished in preperation for a new bridge. The bridge is scheduled to be closed until sometime in November.