Expect Daytime Delays on DC Beltway at Liberty Road
The State Highway Administration tries to do 95 percent of its roadwork on the Beltway at night, but some of the work on its Liberty Road bridge replacement falls into the other 5 percent, and the result is occasional midday delays on that part of Interstate 695.
Prompted by a question from Brian Robey of Catonsville, I contacted the SHA about the work taking place between exits 17 and 19 on the Beltway — that is, the stretch between Security Boulevard and the Interstate 795 split.
Dave Buck, an SHA spokesman, conformed that the roadwork there is part of the Liberty Road project to replace the existing bridge, built at the time I-695 was originally constructed, with a newer and wider bridge that could accommodate a widened Beltway.
Buck said the SHA has had to do some site preparation work in the media during the day between 9 a.m. and 3 p.m. in order to avoid interfering with some of the work going on at night. He said the agency has occasionally had to close the left lanes of the roadway during the day to get heavy equipment into the narrow median area.
Even though the SHA has avoided lane closings during peak travel hours, the midday closings have led to some serious backups, he acknowledged. Some of the Inner Loop backups have reached as far back as Edmondson Ave. or U.S. 40, he said, while Outer Loop backups have on occasion reached Park Heights Avenue.
Buck said that trying to do the median preparation work at night would delay the completion of the project, which is expected to continue through the spring of 2012. There may also be an issue with the use of floodlights at night in a section of the Beltway that threads its way through residential areas.