CLEVELAND -- Beginning Wednesday morning, heavy fines will be handed out to 18-wheeler drivers using the Innerbelt bridge.

The truck ban also includes Ohio Department of Transportation snow plow trucks plowing in tandem.

Because of deteriorating parts on the bridge, safety concerns have prompted the strict weight restrictions.

The trucks will instead have to use Interstate 77 and 490, increasing congestion on those roadways.

But drivers on the Innerbelt will see some relief from traffic tie-ups when a third lane opens in each direction.

ODOT told NewsChannel5 on Monday that only smaller ODOT plows would be allowed on the bridge, but on Tuesday, a representative said engineers re-ran the weight numbers and now full-sized 14-ton snow plows, loaded with eight tons of rock salt, will be allowed to plow the bridge.

However, the plows will not be able to plow in teams as usual during big storms.

Instead, the tandem plows must separate, staying 200 feet or about 66 yards away from each other instead of being nearly side by side clearing a path.

Right now, the biggest trucks allowed on the Innerbelt are five-axle trucks weighing 14 tons.

A loaded ODOT snow plow weighs more than 22 tons. ODOT said it has made concessions for plows and emergency vehicles.