The City of Chicago will begin lifting the movable bridges over the Chicago River this Saturday to allow for recreational boat traffic to make the annual trip from the wide open waters of Lake Michigan to boat storage yards along the South Branch of the Chicago River.

Each year, in the spring and fall, the Chicago Department of Transportation (CDOT) raises the movable bridges along the main and South Branches of the Chicago River on a twice weekly schedule on most Saturdays and Wednesdays for about eight weeks to accommodate the movement of recreational sail boats traveling to and from their storage yards.

“As summer comes to a close, CDOT is preparing to facilitate the annual rite of passage that allows sailors to move their boats from the Lake to their winter storage yards,” said CDOT Commissioner Rebekah Scheinfeld, who also serves as Chicago’s Harbor Master and has jurisdiction over the city’s waterways. “CDOT has worked with local boat storage yards to create a schedule that accommodates boats while minimizing the impact on downtown street traffic.”

During these “boat runs,” the bridges are raised sequentially, typically one at a time. Each bridge lift takes an average of 8-12 minutes. A total of 27 bridges will be lifted in succession from Lake Shore Drive to Ashland Avenue Bridge on the South Branch of the Chicago River.

The Fall 2015 bridge lift schedule is as follows:

• Saturday, Sept. 19^th at 9 am
• Wednesday, Sept. 23^rd at 9:30 am 
• Wednesday, Sept. 30^th at 9:30 am
• Saturday, Oct. 3^rd at 9 am
• Wednesday, Oct. 7^th at 9:30 am
• Saturday, Oct. 10^th at 9 am
• Wednesday, Oct. 14^th at 9:30 am
• Saturday, Oct. 17^th at 9 am
• Wednesday, Oct. 21^st at 9:30 am
• Saturday, Oct. 24^th at 9 am
• Wednesday, Oct. 28^th at 9:30 am
• Saturday, Oct. 31^st at 9 am
• Wednesday, Nov. 4^th at 9:30 am
• Saturday, Nov. 7^th at 9 am
• Saturday, Nov. 14^th at 9 am

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