Notice -- Need for Emergency Repairs at I83 and 29th Street

The Department of Transportation (DOT) would like to advise you that beginning on Friday, April 13, 2012, DOT will close the left lane of both the northbound and southbound Jones Falls Expressway in the vicinity of 29th Street beginning at 7:00 p.m. There is a broken/collapsed storm drain approximately 21 feet below the surface which is causing undermining of the roadway, and emergency repair work needs to be done.

Once the lane closures are implemented, they will remain in effect until construction is complete in approximately two months. We anticipate that the construction will cost approximately $1 million, which will be split between the Departments of Transportation and Public Works.

As you can imagine, these lane closures will cause significant delays, particularly during the morning and afternoon rush hours. Due to the roadway undermining, we need to implement the lane closures for safety reasons as soon as possible, but construction will not begin for at least a couple of weeks, as we finish with design work and secure a contractor.

During construction, there may be the need for additional lane closures and possible full closures of the expressway during night time hours. In order to alert motorists,The Sun will be doing an article for this Sunday’s paper and we will continue to work closely with the media next week to encourage commuters to consider using alternate routes. The 311 Call Center has also been notified, as well as our partners with the Maryland State Highway.