Weekend Road and Rail: I-66 transforms in Fairfax Co., Open Streets DC, Metro work continues – WTOP News

The Express Lanes expansion that’s part of the Transform I-66 Outside the Beltway Project will prompt closures Interstate 495 and U.S. Route 50 in Virginia. Roadwork and bridge maintenance is on the agenda in parts of Maryland. And Metro prepares for upcoming shutdowns.

Here’s what you need to know to get around the D.C. area this weekend.

Roadwork

Maryland

There’s another upgrade set to happen at the Interstate 270 and Md. 80 Urbana interchange. The Maryland Department of Transportation State Highway Administration began safety enhancements on southbound Interstate 270 at Md. 80/Fingerboard Road/Exit 26 this week, which includes overnight ramp closures at this location.

Starting at 8 p.m., state crews will close the exit ramp on southbound I-270 to Md. 80 and the exit ramp on Md. 80 to southbound I-270. This takes place into Friday morning, in an effort to replace old and damaged guardrail.

Since detours will be in place during this time, motorists should plan to take southbound I-270 to Md. 109/Old Hundred Road to return northbound I-270 to access Md. 80.

Motorists using Md. 80 will be detoured to northbound I-270 to take Exit 31 to Md. 85/Buckeystown Pike to access southbound I-270.

State crews also began off-peak preventive bridge maintenance on the southbound Interstate 95 bridge over I-495 near College Park in Prince George’s County this week. That work requires southbound lane closures on I-95 at the Beltway through late spring 2023.

A new ramp resurfacing project to improve the driving surface and enhance safety at the Md. 170/Interstate 195 interchange ramps is underway as well.

In a phase two schedule of ramp resurfacing, crews are working the westbound I-195 ramp to northbound and southbound Md. 170 near Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport in Anne Arundel County.

With this work, crews will temporarily close the westbound I-195 ramp to northbound and southbound Md. 170 overnight, from 9 p.m. to 4 a.m. to mill, patch and resurface the pavement — weather permitting.

Motorists on westbound I-195 will be detoured to Terminal Road, to northbound/southbound Md. 170.

For new details on construction of Metro’s Purple Line, which continues between Prince George’s and Montgomery counties, visit the Purple Line Project website for more details.

You can visit the MDOT SHA website for all of its continuing projects.

Virginia

Expect bridge beam installation happening at the I-66/I-495 interchange in Fairfax County this weekend.

Weather permitting, the northbound I-495 Inner Loop will be reduced to a single travel lane approaching I-66 during overnight hours on Friday and Saturday.

The beams are needed to widen the ramp from I-66 East to I-495 North, for connections from the future I-66 Express Lanes.

The ramp from I-66 East to I-495 North will be closed Friday and Saturday nights in conjunction with this work as well.

The northbound I-495 Express Lanes are scheduled to be closed overnight Friday.

Friday and Saturday Night

The ramp from I-66 East to I-495 North is scheduled to be closed and detoured from 11 p.m. to 6 a.m. Friday and again from 11 p.m. to 8 a.m. Saturday.

In a project that was extended through this weekend due to inclement weather, the interchange work at I-66 East at U.S. 50 in Fairfax will continue the process of implementing a new ramp configuration too.

The new ramp, which won’t open until Tuesday morning, Aug. 30, will have drivers exiting I-66 East to Route 50 West using a new combined exit about 1 mile before Route 50.

To make this ramp change, drivers should expect the ramp from I-66 East to Route 50 West to be closed and detoured through this weekend.

Here’s a map of the I-66 East ramp to WB Route 50 closure. Click to enlarge. (Courtesy VDOT)

This closure will make way for the ramp location, which will be immediately after the Monument Drive bridge over I-66 and will provide access to Route 50 East and West. This will become the new permanent location of Exit 57 A/B.

Here’s what the combined exit will look like. Click to enlarge. (Courtesy VDOT)

There is a new ramp from I-495 North to I-66 West, which opened Thursday morning. The ramp is located a half-mile sooner than before.

There are other work zones tied to the I-66 Express Lanes Expansion Project continuing this weekend, weather permitting. Here are some highlights from VDOT:

I-66 West from Route 29/Centreville to Groveton Road will see two lanes closed for roadwork on Friday from 8:30 p.m. to 7 a.m.

I-66 West at Route 50 will see two lanes closed for a traffic shift on Friday from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m.

The ramp from I-66 West to Route 50 West will be closed and detoured for a traffic shift on Friday from midnight to 5 a.m.

To see which lanes are planned for closures at the I-495/George Washington Parkway/Georgetown Pike interchanges, visit the I-495 Express Lanes Northern Extension (495 NEXT) website. The project sees daily location changes and detours, weather permitting.

Roadwork is always dependent on the weather and based on initial planning and subject to change. Be sure to call the 24/7 WTOP Traffic Center with any updates or changes you see at 866-304-WTOP (9867).

DC

Another D.C. Department of Transportation Open Streets event, which requires parking restrictions and street closures, is scheduled for 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday. 12th Street from Monroe Street to Franklin Street in Northeast will be under Emergency No Parking restrictions form 3 a.m. to 2 p.m. Complete street closures are planned between 7 a.m. and 2 p.m.

Here’s what to expect during Open Streets. (Courtesy DDOT)

In the ongoing work tied to the I-295/DC 295 Corridor Project and the South Capitol Street Corridor Project, expect various lane and ramp closures during off-peak times to include I-295 between Malcolm X Avenue and I-695, Firth Sterling, the Suitland Parkway and South Capitol Street on the weekend.

For any locations related to the Pave DC Project, check the interactive map at the project’s website.

Metro

The Orange Line shutdown for the Platform Rehabilitation Project closes five stations between Stadium-Armory and New Carrollton, continues through Labor Day.

There’s a shutdown on the Yellow Line between L’Enfant Plaza and Pentagon in preparation work for the upcoming Yellow Line Bridge and Tunnel Rehabilitation Project along with general maintenance too. That will result in single-tracking this weekend on the Green and Red lines.

Metro will operate on a normal weekend schedule, from 7 a.m. to 1 a.m. Saturday and 7 a.m. to midnight Sunday. Trains will serve 86 of 91 stations. See the full weekend schedule with service adjustments online.

Metro said it encourages riders to begin travel planning for major construction on the Blue and Yellow lines that will result in rail service changes this fall. Starting Sept. 10, work begins to fix the aging Yellow Line tunnel and bridge with critical improvements necessary to open the future Potomac Yard Station later this fall.

Between Sept. 10 and Oct. 22, six Blue and Yellow line stations south of Reagan National Airport Station will be closed to connect the new Potomac Yard Station to the existing tracks. For more on that upcoming work check WMATA’s project page.