PORTLAND — A new bridge connecting South Portland and Portland is opening after two years of construction.

The new Veterans Memorial Bridge is opening to traffic Thursday afternoon following a morning ceremony attended by Maine’s transportation commissioner, the federal highway administrator, first lady Ann LePage and the CEO of Reed & Reed, the lead contractor on the project.

The bridge, which cost $63 million to build, is a primary connector between Interstate 295 and Portland’s West End, carrying more than 20,000 vehicles a day over the Fore River.

The old bridge, built in 1954, is scheduled to be taken down by December.