Tappan Zee Bridge to close lanes this weekend

Drivers using the Tappan Zee Bridge this weekend will face two big changes.

Drivers will have only one lane to use on the northbound side heading into Rockland County from 9 p.m. Friday night until 2 p.m. Saturday afternoon and again from 9 p.m. Saturday night until 2 p.m. Sunday afternoon, weather permitting. This will allow for the installation of six 75-foot long prefabricated piles that the new Hudson River bridge's southbound road deck will rest upon.  All lanes on the southbound side heading into Westchester County will remain open .

New Jersey Fast Traffic's Bob Williams said the delays can be avoided by using either the Bear Mountain Bridge far to the north or the George Washington Bridge to the south.

"There have been signs posted as far north as Connecticut and in New Jersey warning of the lane closures," Williams said.

It will also be the first full weekend that drivers will no longer have to stop at the Tarrytown toll plaza to pay a cash toll.  An EZ Pass reader in South Nyack, just before the bridge, will scan the devices and take pictures of license plates. Until the plaza is demolished all drivers will go through the unstaffed lanes at 20 mph.

The toll will be $4.75 for EZ Pass users and $5 for non-EZ Pass users. EZ Pass transponders from any state will be accepted. Those without a transponder will be sent a bill by mail.

The new $4 billion bridge is scheduled to open in 2018.