Drivers should be able to cross the Santa Fe River on the new west-side bridge by around Thanksgiving, given the current pace of construction.

The nearly $6 million, quarter-mile extension of Siler Road north from Agua Fría Street will provide a new link between two major traffic arteries: Cerrillos Road and West Alameda Street.

Roadway manager Eric Martinez reported this week that construction crews have completed the bridge beams and deck, as well as paved a large part of the new roadway south of Alameda Street.

The project will provide a safer alternative to a couple of low-water river crossings now frequented by drivers at San Ysidro and at Camino Carlos Rael, planners have said. The latter route is slated for closure once the bridge opens.

The bridge will have two driving lanes and 5-foot shoulders. Sidewalks are planned on both sides of the street but will branch away from the road on the Alameda side.

A roundabout will control traffic where Siler meets West Alameda and is already being used to divert traffic around the site.

Upcoming work includes installing new traffic-signal equipment at Agua Fría Street and removing some areas of sidewalk and landscaping.

The construction budget includes $3.6 million from state transportation bonds, $250,000 from a regional gross-receipts tax and about $750,000 from the city's impact-fee fund, collected from real-estate developers. An additional $1.1 million from city and county funds went for design and acquisition of right of way, Martinez said.

Contact Julie Ann Grimm at 986-3017 or jgrimm@sfnewmexican.com.