VDOT to start 2-year bridge replacement project along Rt. 211 in Page County

Next week, from May 18-22, drivers who regularly use Route 211 in Page County should be prepared for the start of a significant traffic pattern change that will last for quite a while.

According to the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT), they'll be starting work on a 2-year project to replace the westbound bridge over the South Fork of the Shenandoah River between Route 615 (Egypt Bend Road) and Route 646 (Oak Leaf Road).

Throughout construction, both directions of Rt. 211 traffic will use the eastbound bridge span.

Starting next week, crossover lanes will be established to allow westbound Rt. 211 drivers to cross the median and use the eastbound bridge, with a barrier separating eastbound and westbound traffic, which will each be restricted to a single lane.

In the work zone, the speed limit will drop to 45 miles per hour.

Once the new westbound bridge is complete and construction done, in around two years, the crossover will be removed.

A public boat ramp that can normally be accessed under the current westbound bridge has been relocated along the river, with a new access road off of eastbound Rt. 211 leading drivers to a temporary boat ramp near the eastbound bridge. Boaters will only be able to travel upstream, away from the work zone.

According to VDOT, the new Rt. 211 westbound bridge will have two 12-foot travel lanes, a 10-foot right shoulder and a 6-foot left shoulder. It will also be about 200 feet shorter than the existing bridge to match the embankment length of the adjacent eastbound span.

The new bridge will be 625 feet long and will be built in approximately the same location as the current bridge.

The construction is happening thanks to an $11.3 million contract awarded to Fielder’s Choice Enterprises Inc., of Charlottesville, by the Commonwealth Transportation Board last November.

Completion is expected in summer of 2022, with all work weather-permitting.