By the Connect Express Team, Glendale, AZ. Published October 25, 2026.
Caltrans will fully close the Vincent Thomas Bridge (State Route 47) between San Pedro and Terminal Island at 12:01 a.m. on Saturday, November 7, 2026. The closure is expected to last about 16 months while the bridge deck is replaced. It starts just after the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach both posted record cargo months in September. Many import loads that end up in Phoenix-area warehouses move through these two ports, so here is what is changing and what it may mean for freight headed to Arizona.
What is closing, and for how long
According to Caltrans District 7, the $750 million project will replace the bridge deck. The bridge carries about 53,000 vehicles a day, nearly 9 percent of them heavy trucks. Reopening is targeted for early March 2028. Detours will mainly use I-710, I-110, SR 103 and Harry Bridges Boulevard. Caltrans says traffic control officers will be posted at 18 intersections, and local police will expand commercial truck enforcement along the detour routes.
Port of Los Angeles Executive Director Gene Seroka said in the Caltrans release: “Our focus is on keeping cargo moving throughout the Port complex while helping workers and commuters navigate the closure and minimizing impacts on surrounding communities.”
The ports say terminals stay open
The Port of Los Angeles says all of its terminals will stay open and it expects no impact to rail. It says only 8 percent of port complex drayage truck traffic uses the bridge, though detours may add some time to those trips. The Port of Long Beach says its terminals are adding evening and Saturday gates for six weeks starting in late October, skipping Thanksgiving week, to get ahead of the closure.
Record September volumes
- Los Angeles: 1,042,652 TEUs in September, the busiest month in the port’s 118-year history. Loaded imports rose 19 percent.
- Long Beach: 997,177 TEUs, its best month ever and up 25 percent from a year earlier. Imports rose 31.3 percent.
The National Retail Federation’s Global Port Tracker forecasts 2.25 million TEUs of U.S. imports in October, up 8.5 percent year over year, then about 2.0 million in November. NRF’s Jonathan Gold said, “Most holiday merchandise has arrived, and the remainder of the year is just a matter of last-minute replenishment and preparation for early 2027.”
What it means for Phoenix shippers
Most of the import peak should be through the ports before the bridge closes, but containers still on the water in November will meet new detours around Terminal Island. Drayage trips that used the bridge may take longer, and that can push back when a container is unloaded at a Southern California transload or warehouse before its freight heads east on I-10. If you have import freight due in Phoenix in November or December, ask your forwarder or drayage provider whether your terminal’s pickups are affected, and leave extra room in delivery appointments. Once freight is in Arizona, our post on I-10 work near Loop 101 covers the closures on this end.
Connect Express runs dry van, reefer and flatbed truckloads across Phoenix and the Southwest, and our logistics team can help plan the final legs. We are at 5701 W Maryland Ave, Glendale, AZ 85301. Call 480-401-1998 or email admin@connectexpressllc.com.
Sources
- Caltrans District 7, 16-Month Closure of Vincent Thomas Bridge Set for Nov. 7 (October 22, 2026)
- Port of Los Angeles, Vincent Thomas Bridge Deck Replacement (read October 25, 2026)
- Port of Los Angeles, September cargo release (October 9, 2026)
- Port of Long Beach, Port of Long Beach Breaks All-Time Cargo Record in September (October 15, 2026)
- National Retail Federation, Global Port Tracker release (October 8, 2026)
