August 19, 2024

What's Happening?

Delivery and installation of girders for the new Old Dominion Drive bridge is planned to begin during the overnight of Monday, Aug. 19, and will continue until completion through early September. The girder work must be performed during overnight hours due to traffic impacts on both I-495 (Capital Beltway) and Old Dominion Drive. 

Old Dominion Drive will be utilized to deliver girders to work zones adjacent to the bridge’s abutments, during which time the road will be reduced to a single lane, with flaggers directing traffic in alternating directions. 

Cranes (note crane boom at top-left) will lift and place girders, connecting the eastern bridge abutment (foreground) with the pier in the distance and beyond to the western abutment.

During girder installation, for safety reasons, no Beltway traffic can pass below as cranes lift and place the girders onto the new bridge’s abutments and piers. Multi-lane closures with brief traffic stoppages are necessary, which can only be implemented during overnight hours (10 p.m. to 5 a.m.), when traffic is lightest. 

What Neighbors Should Expect:

Neighbors in close proximity of the Old Dominion Drive Bridge may experience nighttime construction impacts, the most prominent being:

• Noise from trucks and cranes as the girders are delivered and off-loaded. 
• Noise from cranes as they pick up, move and place the girders.
• Noise from vehicle back-up alarms (required for safety reasons).
• Light pollution from light towers that enable crews to perform work efficiently and safely.

Following girder emplacement, crews will install deck pans (which hold in place poured concrete) and steel rebar, then place concrete to form the deck of the new bridge. The project will progress the adjoining Old Dominion Drive roadway to align with the new bridge. Traffic is planned to be switched onto the new bridge this fall, with demolition of the old bridge to follow.

Resources:

Learn how various features of the 495 NEXT project interact with your property by utilizing the interactive map by clicking here. Enter your address and use the field chooser to view your home in relation to various project features, including the future Beltway itself and the location of replacement noise walls.

Check 495NEXT.vdot.virginia.gov for the latest construction updates and to sign up to receive the project newsletter and other information.

Construction plans are subject to change due to weather, utility relocations performed by outside companies, resequencing of work to facilitate on-time completion of the overall project, and other factors.

Questions?

Email: 495NorthernExtension@vdot.virginia.gov

Call: Construction Inquiry Line, 703-592-6430

Virginia Department of Transportation, Michelle Holland, 703-586-0487

Transurban, Amanda Allen, 571-249-8784

Lane Construction, John Undeland, 703-785-3461