Meet the new Ottawa Street; not quite the old Ottawa Street.

Nor, for that matter, is it much like the Ottawa Street of the future.

A temporary bypass of Ottawa opened to drivers Friday afternoon. It’s meant to carry traffic past Homer Watson Boulevard and Alpine Road while roundabouts are built at those intersections.

It means most drivers aren’t able to head southbound onto either Homer Watson or Alpine from Ottawa. (Right turns onto Alpine are still doable for eastbound drivers.)

The four-lane bypass is expected to be in place until late August or early September. At that point, the roundabouts will be ready to go – albeit with reduced lanes as the construction project is finished off.