VDOT News - Staunton

STAUNTON – Construction preparation is beginning for the Route 33 (East Market Street) bridges project in Harrisonburg, which replaces two bridges over Interstate 81 at Exit 247 and two railroad bridges just west of the interchange. Preparation work will begin with construction sign installation. The sign work will begin on September 26 and will not impact traffic.

On July 20, 2022 a $43.3 million project was awarded to Triton Construction Inc. of Virginia, headquartered in St. Albans, W.Va. Completion is in summer 2026.

Two-way traffic on Route 33 will be maintained throughout the project. No daily on-going lane restrictions will occur but motorists should be alert for temporary construction activities, such as beam placement, which could cause periodic lane closures. The work zone will be closed to pedestrian traffic.

The four bridges were built in 1960 and have reached the end of their service life. A single new bridge will replace the Route 33 eastbound and westbound bridges over I-81. A single new bridge will replace the Route 33 eastbound and westbound bridges over Norfolk Southern Railroad and Blacks Run. Reconstruction of Route 33 will be done at the new bridges’ approaches. All the new bridges will have two lanes in each direction with reconstructed approaches.

The project includes a new shared use path in the median of Route 33 beginning at the Burgess Road and Linda Lane intersection, extending across the new bridges to Martin Luther King Way.

The northbound side of the interchange will receive improvements in both the southeastern and northeastern quadrants, which will eliminate the weave movements occurring on I-81 at the deceleration and acceleration ramps.

The project will remove the southeastern quadrant loop ramp, which currently serves traffic from Route 33 eastbound to northbound I-81. In the area of the removed ramp, the northbound I-81 deceleration lane to the westbound Route 33 ramp will be extended.

In the northeast quadrant Route 33 eastbound traffic will enter northbound I-81 from a new ramp constructed to connect with the existing northbound I-81 acceleration ramp. A new left-turn lane with a new traffic signal will be built for eastbound Route 33 traffic to enter the northbound acceleration ramp.

Additional construction on the southeast quadrant includes a spur ramp from the northbound I-81 deceleration ramp to eastbound Route 33. This spur ramp will serve traffic making the left turn onto Linda Lane. The dual left-turn lanes along eastbound Route 33 at Linda Lane will be extended to accommodate the new spur ramp. A narrow raised median between the left-turn lane and westbound Route 33 will be constructed.

The southbound side of the interchange will receive improvements in both the southwestern and northwestern quadrants, which will provide additional space.

In the southwest quadrant, the westbound Route 33 left-turn lane onto the southbound I-81 acceleration ramp will be reconstructed and extended.

In the northwest quadrant, the southbound I-81 deceleration ramp onto westbound Route 33 will be realigned in order to provide a longer merge area onto Route 33.

In all four quadrants, as needed, there will be reconstruction of merge lanes and tie-ins from acceleration and deceleration ramps around the bridges.

Project updates can be found on the VDOT website:
https://www.virginiadot.org/projects/staunton/harrisonburg-city-8211-interstate-81-exit-247-ramps-and-route-33-bridges-over-i-81-and-norfolk-southern-railroad.asp

Virginia traffic alerts and traveler information can be obtained by dialing 511. Traffic alerts and traveler information also are available at http://www.511Virginia.org.

The VDOT Customer Service Center can assist with reporting road hazards, asking transportation questions, or getting information related to Virginia’s roads. Call 800-FOR- ROAD (800-367-7623) or use its mobile friendly website at https://my.vdot.virginia.gov/. Agents are available 24 hours-a-day, seven days a week.

The Staunton District Twitter feed is at @VaDOTStaunton. Follow VDOT on Facebook, Flickr, Twitter and YouTube. RSS feeds are also available for statewide information. The VDOT Web page is located at http://www.VirginiaDOT.org.

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

(END)

Information in VDOT news releases was accurate at the time the release was published. For the most current information about projects or programs, please visit the project or program Web pages. You may find those by searching by keyword in the search Virginia DOT box above.