The new Yazoo River bridge on U.S. Highway 61 will open to traffic on Monday.

Construction on the $32.7 million project began in 2006.

The old bridge, with its overhead superstructure, was one of the region’s most scenic when it opened in 1950. It will be closed Monday and removed later.

The new bridge has two 12-foot lanes. The new structure is 40 feet from side to side, 14 feet wider than the old one.

U.S. Highway 61 North is traveled heavily by passenger vehicles and 18-wheel rigs and log trucks. MDOT estimates 7,000 vehicles per day travel portions of the highway between Interstate 20 and Mississippi Highway 3.

The bridge is where the four-lane ends and U.S. 61 becomes two-lane through much of the Mississippi Delta.