Under Construction

Project Number 0066-076-113, C505 (UPC 52326)

Note: Route 29 in Gainesville will be reduced to one lane Jan. 7-8 for a major traffic switch. See news release for details.

Temporary one-way traffic on Old Linton Hall Road is in place through Jan. 31. See news release for detour map and more details.

Background

Over the last several years, VDOT has made a series of major improvements in the Gainesville area:

• First was the construction of University Boulevard, a 1.3-mile, four-lane road connecting Route 29 and Wellington Road which opened in 2006 at a cost of $18 million. 
• Second was widening 3.3 miles of I-66 to eight lanes from Route 234 Business/Sudley Road to the Route 234 Bypass. Construction was completed in 2006 and the cost was $46 million.
• Third was widening 2.5 miles of I-66 to eight lanes from the Route 234 Bypass to Route 29 at Gainesville at a cost of $103 million.
• Fourth is the Route 29 and Linton Hall Road overhaul, at a cost of about $267 million.
  

The commonwealth’s investment in all four projects totals $435 million.

What's Being Done

The project to improve the Route 29/Linton Hall Road interchange is one of the largest construction projects in Virginia.

The centerpiece of the project is a pair of overpasses: one carrying Route 29 over the Norfolk Southern Railroad, and one carrying Linton Hall and Gallerher roads over the railroad and Route 29. To further improve traffic flow, crews will also widen Route 29 to six lanes and eliminate driveway entrances and two traffic signals between I-66 and Virginia Oaks Drive.

The new, grade-separated interchange at Route 29/Linton Hall Road will create a limited-access facility on Route 29 between Virginia Oaks Drive and Heathcote Boulevard.

View a video rendering (right) of the new interchange. (For optimum viewing, right-click on the link and choose "Save as" to your local machine.)

Traffic Impacts

Note: Temporary one-way traffic on Old Linton Hall Road is in place for about one month beginning the week of Oct. 10, 2011. See news release for detour map and more details.

Permanent closure of access between Route 29 and Route 55: As of Sept. 23, 2010, drivers can no longer turn right from Route 29 South onto Route 55 (John Marshall Highway) or access Route 29 from Route 55. Drivers can use Heathcote Boulevard to Catharpin Road to Route 55 or Gallerher Road to Route 55 (see news release).

Detour Roads
Before construction of the new interchange begins, crews will construct two temporary detour roads ( view map) to carry both Route 29 and Linton Hall Road around the interchange for the duration of the project.

Construction of the temporary roads and access roads is expected to take about two years. Drivers will be informed of the new traffic pattern well before the road is open to traffic.

Traffic Data
According to 2008 traffic counts, I-66 carries 82,000 vehicles a day between Route 29 and the Route 234 Bypass, and will carry more than 175,000 vehicles a day by 2028. Route 29 carries roughly 57,000 vehicles a day through Gainesville and is expected to increase to 87,000 by 2035. Linton Hall Road carried 15,500 vehicles per day in 2005, and by 2035 is expected to grow to 42,000.
 

Project Updates

• Contractor has begun installation of temporary construction signs, erosion and sediment control measures and concrete barriers along the construction zone.
  
  
• Contractor has also begun cut and fill operations for the Route 29 detour.
  
  
• Minor traffic impacts will be seen due to daily lane closures required to perform construction activities.

Resources

Map of detour roads
News release: Route 29 Gainesville Makeover Begins (June 24, 2010)
News release: Access Between Route 29 South and Route 55 to Close (Sept. 15, 2010)

Video rendering of interchange improvements (50,189 KB)
(For optimum viewing, right-click on the link and choose "Save as" to your local machine.)

Page last modified: Jan. 6, 2012

 

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