Albemarle County: Traffic on US 250 at Interstate 64 to be detoured due to paving work

Traffic on US 250 in Albemarle County will be detoured onto Interstate 64 overnight on Saturday and Sunday while paving work is done on US 250 at the $14.3 million diverging diamond interchange project.

During the paving operations, from 9 p.m. Saturday to 7 a.m. Sunday, and from 9 p.m. Sunday to 5 a.m. Monday, only emergency vehicles will be allowed to travel through the work area.

During the paving operations traffic will detour as follows:

• US 250 Westbound through traffic will use I-64 East to Exit 129 (Route 616 Keswick/Boyd Tavern) then back to US 250.
• US 250 Eastbound through traffic will use I-64 West to Exit 121 (Route 20 Charlottesville/Scottsville) then back to US 250.
• I-64 Eastbound to US 250 Westbound traffic will use I-64 East to Exit 129 (Route 616 Keswick/Boyd Tavern) then back to US 250.
• I-64 Westbound to US 250 Eastbound traffic will use I-64 West to Exit 121 (Route 20 Charlottesville/Scottsville) then back to US 250.

When the paving is complete the third lane of US 250 through the interchange will open to traffic, which should alleviate some of the congestion and delays that motorists have been experiencing during peak travel periods.

The diverging diamond interchange briefly shifts vehicles to the opposite side of the road, eliminating traditional left turns that must cross over oncoming traffic.

The new interchange will improve safety by reducing the number of spots where vehicles could collide and can handle more than 600 left-turn movements per hour, twice the capacity of a conventional interchange.

When driving through the diverging diamond configuration, motorists will proceed through a traffic signal at one end of the interchange and follow their lane to the opposite side of the roadway. Motorists who wish to access I-64 will merge left onto the interstate using an on-ramp without having to stop or wait for oncoming traffic to pass.

Through traffic on US 250 proceeds to a second traffic signal at the opposite side of the interchange and follows their lane back to the right side of the road.

Until construction is complete in February, lane closures will continue during nighttime hours. The speed limit on US 250 through the project is 25 miles per hour.