CHARLESTON, WV – This morning, the Department of Transportation re-opened all lanes of interstate traffic near the I-77/I-79 split in Charleston, marking the conclusion of a major project to repair and replace a series of bridge decks near the Westmoreland Road area.
The project, which was originally scheduled to take 100 days, ended up being completed in just 91 days – more than a full week ahead of schedule.
“What’s really exciting is that, for a long time, we would have never even dreamed of being able to do a project of this magnitude so quickly,” Deputy Secretary of Transportation Jimmy Wriston, P.E. said. “But, under Governor Justice’s leadership, we’ve been encouraged to find new ways to fix every single road of this state faster than we ever have before. And, for this project, our crews were able to use new techniques and technology to get the work done at break-neck speed.”
The project consisted of replacing the decks of several bridges along I-77/I-79 in Charleston, including the Tom Williams Family overpass bridge over Garrison Avenue, the bridge over Westmoreland Drive, and the overpass bridge across Cora Street. Additionally, the Spring Street overpass bridge received a deck resurfacing overlay.
“The scale of this project was massive. Fixing up several bridge decks like this is a big deal and I think our new methods saved the traveling public months of extra time stuck in work zones,” Wriston said. “It just another example of how Governor Justice and the WVDOT have put an absolute top priority on getting our roads fixed and getting them fixed as fast as humanly possible.”
Brayman Construction served as the contractor for the project.
Drivers are urged to remain alert in the area, as various traffic controls are still in place. Additionally, follow-up work and removal of equipment may cause brief, intermittent closures through next week.
