MARTINSBURG, W.Va. — A work zone on Northbound Interstate 81 between Exit 8 for Tabler Station and Exit 12 for Apple Harvest Drive may cause delays this weekend.
On Friday, traffic was reduced to one lane through the area causing backups all the way back to the Virginia border.
West Virginia Department of Highways District 5 Manager Lee Thorne said motorists need to use caution while traveling down that stretch as there is limited space for the workers.
“I’m sure they are trying to gain as much space as they can to work but that also crowds the motorists as well,” said Thorne. “That’s why it is very critical to slow down when you are coming into a work zone. Just pay attention to the signs.”
The project is part of Justice’s Roads to Prosperity program passed by voters in 2017. The project has been awarded through a general obligation bond to A.L.L. Construction, Inc. of Mount Storm. A.L.L.’s bid was $49,456,139.
The work will widen the highway to six lanes total on a 3.6-mile section between the Apple Harvest Drive (mile 12) and Tabler Station Road (mile 8) interchanges. Work is scheduled to start this fall and tentatively run until August 2020.
Construction continues on a separate portion of I-81 between Falling Waters (mile 23) and the Maryland state line. That project includes replacing two bridges crossing the Potomac River. Maryland and West Virginia are splitting the cost of the bridge project.
Thorne adds that he expects that project to continue into 2019.