WASHINGTON — One of two southbound lanes on the Baltimore-Washington Parkway is scheduled to be closed this weekend and next weekend near BWI Marshall Airport, which could cause significant delays.
The State Highway Administration work is scheduled from 9 p.m. Friday to 5 a.m. Monday on July 14-17 and July 21-24, weather permitting.
The work includes repaving the stretch of Md. 295 between Interstate 195 and Md. 100, repairing guardrails and improving drainage.
With a southbound lane blocked all weekend over the roughly three-mile stretch, more drivers could divert onto I-95, adding to traffic there as well.
Drivers leaving the airport who still want to take the parkway may want to consider using Aviation Boulevard (Md. 170) past the Amtrak station to reach Md. 100 in order to get on the BW Parkway beyond the work zone.
The work is not scheduled to affect northbound traffic.
Dulles Airport traffic impact this weekend too
While it is not likely to create as much of a traffic jam as the Maryland work, Silver Line construction on the Reston Town Center station Saturday will cause some lane changes on the Dulles Access Road and Dulles Toll Road.
From 6 a.m. to midnight July 15, the eastbound Dulles Access Road (traffic coming from the airport) will be shifted into the left lane of the Dulles Toll Road in the 1.1 mile stretch between the Fairfax County Parkway and Reston Parkway.
Dulles Toll Road drivers will use the two right lanes as usual, and cones will keep the access road separated.
The Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority said drivers coming from the airport who want to exit at the Fairfax County Parkway or Reston Parkway should follow signs a few miles in advance of the exit that will direct them into the toll road lanes.
Similar lane shifts are expected to continue on future weekends, as the pedestrian bridges and other large pieces are put in place at the new Silver Line stations, which are due to open by 2020.
More significant upcoming DTR construction impact is long-term
A longer-term detour is scheduled to start Sunday for some Dulles Toll Road drivers just west of the Fairfax County Parkway.
Beginning Sunday night (weather permitting) and continuing through the end of the year, eastbound drivers on the Dulles Toll Road who want to exit to the Fairfax County Parkway will be required to go through the Herndon-Monroe Park & Ride lot.
The detour includes a speed limit of 35 mph, and will take drivers next to a busy park and ride and bus pickup and drop-off area.
The Park & Ride lot and bus bays will remain open as usual.
Work crews plan utility and ramp work in the area as part of construction of the Herndon Metro Station in the median of the highway there.
