Work on the $62.1 million interchange at interstates 880 and 280 is coming down to the final paving stretch — and getting to Silicon Valley’s main shopping hubs at Valley Fair and Santana Row this Christmas season should be much easier.

In a few days, three new on- and offramps to Stevens Creek Boulevard will open, and by Thanksgiving a special lane feeding traffic onto Monroe Street and bypassing Stevens Creek Boulevard should be ready. And early next year the biggest plum — the flyover ramp from north Interstate 280 to north Interstate 880 — should open, just before all the shovels and cranes are removed and workers depart for good.

“That is good news, very good news,” said Brenda Ramos, of Milpitas, who often shops at Valley Fair, where backups are frequent seven days a week. “I want to spend more time shopping and less time sitting in an idling car.”

She may get her wish. Planners with the Valley Transportation Authority hope the improvements will make this the easiest holiday shopping season since construction began more than two years ago.

“It’s Christmas in October,” said VTA spokeswoman Brandi Childress. “All the key components for a better travel experience to this major shopping destination are going to be in place just before the time of year when it matters the most.”

Gone will be some of the loop ramps, replaced by ramps where traffic signals will be in place. Stevens Creek will be closed between Monroe Street and Di Salvo Avenue — the freeway overpass — on Wednesday from 8 p.m. to 5 a.m. the following morning. On Thursday, the closure will begin at 10 p.m. and continue until 5 a.m.

Here are the looming changes:

Motorists driving south on I-880 will use a new signalized offramp to turn onto Stevens Creek. There will be three lanes turning right toward Valley Fair and Santana Row and one lane turning left toward downtown San Jose. Drivers on Stevens Creek headed to southbound Highway 17 and southbound I-280 will use a new onramp located closer to the freeway than the current one.

And motorists traveling to Stevens Creek from northbound Highway 17 and northbound I-280 will see a new signalized intersection. Traffic from these ramps will no longer cross underneath the Stevens Creek Bridge and loop onto the busy street. Instead, they will make a left-hand turn through a new intersection with traffic lights

All pedestrian traffic will be temporarily diverted to the south side of the Stevens Creek Bridge while crews rebuild the northern sidewalk, fencing and lighting. This closure is scheduled to continue through the end of the year.

“Because the new interchange is so different, motorists are advised to slow down and follow the signage,” Childress said.

Of the $62.1 million cost, $39.2 million came from state bonds approved by voters eight years ago. The federal government chipped in $19 million, and the remainder came from local tax dollars.

The reconstruction is a scaled-back version of what had been planned. There will be no exit from north I-280 onto Winchester Boulevard to allow for a back way into Santana Row, as VTA wanted, nor will there be a second lane for traffic going south on 880 to reach north 280.

All that would have run the cost up to $150 million, and Caltrans feared that this ramp would be too close to the new interchange and create more problems than it would ease.

Contact Gary Richards at 408-920-5335.