New signal, traffic shift coming at Rappahannock River crossing

The public is invited to join the Virginia Department of Transportation for a virtual open house to learn about ongoing construction to improve Interstate 95 in the Fredericksburg area.

Project officials will share details on a new traffic pattern at Exit 133 (Route 17) in Stafford County that will begin Oct. 7, and a traffic shift on I-95 southbound scheduled for Oct. 13-14. The changes are part of the I-95 Southbound Rappahannock River Crossing project.

The virtual construction open house will be held at 7 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 1.

The public can participate by visiting the project page and using the WebEx conference link and passcode to join the open house. No pre-registration is required.

Participants can watch a brief presentation from VDOT staff, followed by a question and answer session. The virtual open house will be recorded and made available online.

New Traffic Pattern on Route 17 in Stafford County

Temporary traffic signals will be activated on Route 17 near the I-95 interchange in Stafford on Monday, Oct. 5. Drivers can expect daytime single lane closures on Oct. 5 as the traffic signals are placed in flash mode.

Two loop ramps are closing at I-95 southbound and Route 17 to allow crews to demolish and rebuild the existing I-95 southbound overpass at this interchange.

The signals will operate in flash mode for several days to allow motorists to adjust to their presence. The signal will then be placed in full color operation overnight on Wednesday, Oct. 7.

By early morning on Thursday, Oct. 8, travelers exiting I-95 southbound at Exit 133 to proceed north or south on Route 17 will use a single off-ramp. At the end of the ramp, motorists will have the choice to merge onto Route 17 northbound toward Warrenton, or use the temporary traffic signal to turn left onto Route 17 southbound toward Falmouth.

Route 17 northbound traffic will turn left at the temporary signal to enter the I-95 southbound on-ramp.

Watch a simulation video of this new traffic pattern for I-95 exiting to Route 17, and a simulation video demonstrating Route 17 northbound traffic entering I-95 southbound.

View a map showing the new pattern.

I-95 Southbound Traffic Shift

Travelers are also asked to plan ahead for major travel delays in the Fredericksburg area near the Exit 133 interchange from 7 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 13 through 2 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 14.

Lane closures are needed for 19 consecutive hours of milling, paving and lane striping to shift southbound traffic onto a new interstate overpass that spans Route 17 in Stafford County.

I-95 southbound travelers are strongly encouraged to choose an alternate route to avoid delays, especially for destinations outside the Fredericksburg area.

What Travelers Can Expect

I-95 southbound will be reduced to two travel lanes beginning at 7 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 13. The work zone will begin south of Exit 136 (Centreport Parkway) in Stafford and will continue to the Rappahannock River bridge.

Traffic will be reduced to a single southbound lane at 9 p.m. that evening. I-95 southbound will remain reduced to a single lane until 2 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 14.

View a map of this work zone.

When all I-95 southbound lanes reopen at 2 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 14, traffic will be traveling over the new I-95 southbound overpass in the median of I-95, which will carry the future through travel lanes as part of the I-95 Southbound Rappahannock River Crossing.

Watch a simulation video of this new traffic pattern.

All lanes of I-95 northbound will remain open near Exit 133 during this traffic shift.
In the event of inclement weather, this work zone will be rescheduled for 7 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 14 to 2 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 15.

Project Background

Construction on the I-95 Southbound Rappahannock River Crossing began in August 2018 and will be underway through May 2022.

The $132 million project is building three additional travel lanes between Exit 133 in Stafford and Exit 130 (Route 3) in Fredericksburg, and will build a new bridge span over the Rappahannock River.

New lanes are being built parallel to the existing southbound lanes in the median. With nearly 150,000 vehicles a day traveling on I-95 near the Rappahannock River, the new lanes will allow local traffic to travel along I-95 between interchanges separated from regional and interstate traffic traveling through the Fredericksburg area.

The I-95 Northbound Rappahannock River Crossing project will build additional northbound travel lanes between the same interchanges. Preliminary construction activities began in summer 2020, and new lanes will open to traffic in early 2024.

Both Rappahannock River Crossing projects will connect with 95 Express Lanes, which are being extended over 10 additional miles in Stafford to the Route 17 area. The 95 Express Lanes Fredericksburg Extension is under construction and will open to traffic in late 2022.

For additional information, please visit the Improve 95 website.