Expect major lane closures on I-395 ‘for at least six consecutive weekends’

From a press release:

Travelers should expect major lane closures on the I-395 general purpose lanes beginning the weekend of July 20-22, and continuing for at least six consecutive weekends, depending on weather. The weekend closures, which will occur from Friday nights until Monday mornings, are needed for crews to safely rehabilitate multiple bridges along I-395 between the Springfield Interchange and the Washington, D.C. line. Motorists are encouraged to use alternate routes. If travel in this area is unavoidable, drivers should use caution and plan extra travel time.

What Drivers Should Expect:

• Two general purpose lanes on I-395 will close for entire weekend periods starting on Friday nights through Monday mornings (alternating between south- and northbound directions, depending on location of bridge work); additional lane closures will occur in the opposite direction of I-395 as needed to allow crews to access work areas.
• At least two general purpose lanes will remain open on I-395 (in both directions) during peak-travel daytime hours.
• To help ease traffic impacts, the HOV lanes from just north of Edsall Road to the D.C. line will be open in the same direction as the bridge work, whether northbound or southbound.
• Thru-traffic (northbound to DC and southbound to Springfield) will be encouraged to use the HOV lanes, while local traffic will need to use the two open general purpose lanes.
• Weekly updates with specific closure information will be available at: 395ExpressLanes.com and VDOT’s 395 Express Lanes Web Page.
• Current plans call for the reversible I-95 Express Lanes, from near Edsall Road to past Garrisonville Road in Stafford, to operate according to their normal schedule.  

Overall, the bridge improvement work involves removing and replacing bridge deck surfaces on the Four Mile Run Bridge, and five bridges that are part of the I-395 Express Lanes Northern Extension Project, which is extending the I-95 Express Lanes eight miles north to the D.C. line. The I-395 Northern Extension Project is being delivered through a public-private partnership between the Virginia Department of Transportation and Transurban. The lane extension is slated to open in late 2019.