STAUNTON – Motorists should be alert for nighttime delays on southbound Interstate 81 on Wednesday, April 5, in Augusta County near Staunton. Contractors for the Virginia Department of Transportation are scheduled to remove a large overhead sign at mile marker 222.4. The operation will require lane and on-ramp closures and slow-roll traffic control.

Beginning at 8 p.m. Wednesday, the right and center lanes of southbound I-81 will be closed between exit 222 (Route 250/Staunton) and exit 221 (to eastbound I-64). Southbound I-81 motorists will be able to access I-64 eastbound at exit 221, but the on-ramp from Route 250 onto southbound I-81 will be closed.

Between 11:30 p.m. and 12 midnight, law enforcement will lead a southbound I-81 slow traffic roll starting at exit 227 (Route 612/Verona) and proceeding south past the work zone. The slow traffic roll will create a roughly 15-minute gap in traffic to allow a crane to remove the overhead sign. During the slow traffic roll, the on-ramp to southbound I-81 from exit 225 (Route 262/Woodrow Wilson Parkway) will be briefly closed.

Lane and ramp closures are scheduled to be lifted by 7 a.m. Thursday, April 6. All work is weather permitting.

In the event of inclement weather, the I-81 sign removal and related traffic restrictions will be rescheduled for the night of Thursday, April 6.

The VDOT Staunton District serves Frederick, Shenandoah, Clarke, Warren, Page, Rockingham, Augusta, Highland, Rockbridge, Alleghany and Bath counties.

For updated traffic alerts and traveler information, dial 511 or visit 511Virginia.org. For other assistance call the VDOT Customer Service Center, available 24 hours-a-day, seven days a week. Citizens can dial 1-800-FOR-ROAD (1-800-367-7623) from anywhere in the state to report road hazards, ask transportation questions, or get information related to Virginia’s roads.

The VDOT Staunton District is on Facebook and Twitter. Follow VDOT on Facebook, Flickr, Twitter and YouTube. RSS feeds are also available for statewide information. The VDOT Web page is located at www.VirginiaDOT.org.

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