CHESAPEAKE, Va. (WAVY) — You may need to add some extra time to your commute starting Monday as Chesapeake is closing the Centerville Turnpike Bridge for six months.

Starting Saturday, August 24, everyone in Chesapeake needs to be prepared for longer commutes to work, school or daycare, and it’s going to be this way until after Valentine’s Day.

The city says the bridge has to be removed from the roadway in order to do the necessary repairs on the mechanism that opens and closes the bridge, as well as removing lead paint and replacing the bridge deck.

This $10.5 million rehab project is all about making it safer for drivers and boaters.

Centerville Turnpike is a major connector between Chesapeake and Virginia Beach, and the bridge crosses the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway. The city will post detours.

In order to get around without the bridge, drivers will need to take either Mount Pleasant Road to the Chesapeake Expressway, or take Butts Station Road and then Kempsville Road to get to the Expressway.

You can sign up for traffic alerts by texting PEAKETRAFFIC TO 888-777. Of course, our Marielena Balouris will be following backups and delays every morning with alternates for you on WAVY News 10 Today.