Westbound Interstate 64 in Rockbridge County will close March 19

The Virginia Department of Transportation will briefly close westbound Interstate 64 in Rockbridge County on March 19, 2015 to make pavement repairs in the area of the Maury River bridges near Lexington. The closure is scheduled to take effect at 8 p.m. and is expected to be complete by midnight.

During the pavement work, westbound traffic will detour south on Interstate 81 to exit 150, and then follow Route 220 north back to I-64 at exit 27 in Alleghany County. Signs and variable message boards will guide motorists through the roughly 90-mile detour.

These repairs will take place on I-64 westbound between mile markers 53.3 and 55.3, where contractors are rehabilitating bridges over the Maury River. Potholes recently formed on the interstate because of winter storms and temperature fluctuations, and crews made temporary repairs in late February. VDOT lowered the westbound speed limit to 45 miles an hour and restricted vehicle widths to 10 feet 6 inches.

When the new pavement repairs are complete, the width restriction will be lifted and the speed limit through the Maury River bridges work zone will return to 55 miles an hour. All work is weather permitting.

During the $12.9 million bridge rehabilitation, eastbound traffic tapers to a single lane and accesses the westbound lanes using a median crossover. After crossing the bridge, eastbound drivers follow a second median crossover to return to the I-64 eastbound mainline. Westbound traffic throughout the work zone is limited to a single lane.

This traffic pattern will remain in effect until fall 2015, when all traffic will be switched to the eastbound bridge while the westbound bridge begins rehabilitation.  That traffic pattern will last approximately one year.

Details on the Maury River bridges project and a high-resolution map of the temporary detour route are available here.

The VDOT Staunton District serves Frederick, Shenandoah, Clarke, Warren, Page, Rockingham, Augusta, Highland, Rockbridge, Alleghany and Bath counties.

Traffic alerts and traveler information can be obtained by dialing 511. Traffic alerts and traveler information also are available at 511Virginia.org. For other assistance call the VDOT Customer Service Center, available 24 hours-a-day, seven days a week. Citizens can dial 1-800-FOR- ROAD (1-800-367-7623) from anywhere in the state to report road hazards, ask transportation questions, or get information related to Virginia’s roads.

The Staunton District Twitter feed is at @VaDOTStaunton. VDOT can be followed onFacebook, Flickr, Twitter and YouTube. RSS feeds are also available for statewide information. The VDOT Web page is located at www.VirginiaDOT.org.