On or about Friday night, July 18, VDOT road crews will implement the second of two major traffic shifts within the 1-495 outer loop near Tysons. The construction will impact all four lanes on southbound I-495 within the I-495 Express Lanes Northern Extension project area.
This second phase will shift southbound I-495 lanes from Georgetown Pike to midway between Old Dominion Drive and Lewinsville Road. Traffic will be directed onto newly constructed lanes on the outer section of the highway.
Work will begin Friday night. Crews plan to reopen all southbound lanes in this section of the Beltway in their new alignment by 10 a.m. on Saturday, July 19. Saturday and Sunday nights, July 19 and 20, will serve as backup dates in case of inclement weather or other work delays.
These lane shifts will allow crews to access the center portion of the Beltway to construct new express lanes. It’s all part of VDOT’s ongoing I-495 Express Lanes Northern Expansion (495 NEXT) project. Crews conducted similar work on the northbound lanes in May and the southbound lanes in June.
What Drivers on I-495 Near Tysons Can Expect
Traffic on all four general-purpose lanes of southbound I-495 from just south of Georgetown Pike to midway between Old Dominion Drive and Lewinsville Road (just north of the Dulles Corridor Interchange) will be shifted onto new lanes built on the outer side of the Beltway.
Crews will set up a single mobile lane closure beginning at 8 p.m. on Friday night. They will close a second lane at 9 p.m., and three lanes will be closed by 10 p.m. on southbound I-495 between approximately George Washington Memorial Parkway (GWMP) and Lewinsville Road.
One southbound lane on I-495 will remain open to traffic, except when intermittent total traffic stoppages or slow-roll traffic operations occur between midnight and 5 a.m. Police will be on hand to direct traffic.
Lanes will begin to reopen at 6 a.m. on Saturday, July 19. All four southbound lanes should be flowing in their new alignment by 10 a.m.
1-495 Ramp Closures
Additionally, the ramp from northbound GWMP to southbound I-495, the ramp from Georgetown Pike to southbound I-495, and the ramp from southbound I-495 to Georgetown Pike (Exit 44) will be closed and detoured from 10 p.m. on Friday until 5 a.m. on Saturday with the following routes:
- Drivers on northbound GWMP to southbound I-495 will be detoured to take the exit from GWMP to Georgetown Pike, then follow the detour for traffic from Georgetown Pike to southbound I-495 (listed below).
- Those traveling on Georgetown Pike to southbound I-495 will be detoured to exit Georgetown Pike to southbound Balls Hill Road, then left onto Lewinsville Road, then right onto southbound Route 123/Dolley Madison Boulevard, then right to access the on-ramp for southbound I-495.
- Motorists on southbound I-495 to Georgetown Pike (Exit 44) will be detoured to continue southbound on I-495 to northbound Route 123 Exit 46B, then to northbound I-495 general purpose lanes to Georgetown Pike.
Next Steps
If the project is rescheduled for Saturday night, July 19, lane closures will begin at 8 p.m., with all lanes reopened in their new alignment by 11 a.m., Sunday, July 20. If rescheduled for Sunday night, lane closures will begin at 8 p.m., with all lanes reopened in their new alignment by no later than 6 a.m. on Monday, July 21.
Once this second traffic shift is completed on southbound I-495, crews will work in the center area of the beltway to construct the new I-495 Express Lanes.
All work is weather dependent and may be rescheduled if necessary. Drivers can access Northern Virginia traffic, work zone, and incident information online at 511.vdot.virginia.gov, via the free mobile 511Virginia app, or by calling 511. Visit 495next.vdot.virginia.gov for the latest construction and lane closure information.
Feature image, stock.adobe.com
