(AP) - The new eastbound Goethals Bridge span is set to open this weekend after the 89-year-old original bridge that connects Elizabeth with Staten Island closes on Friday night.

Gov. Chris Christie and New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo on Thursday announced New York-bound traffic will use the first of the twin spans late Saturday afternoon. New Jersey-bound lanes will open late Sunday afternoon.

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey says the $1.5 billion cable-stayed crossing is the agency's first new bridge opening since the Bayonne Bridge was completed in 1931.

The second of the twin spans will open in 2018.

The new Goethals Bridge spans will each have three 12-foot lanes along with 12-foot outer shoulders and five-foot inner shoulders.