Long term single lane closure on Eastbound Salisbury bypass

The Maryland Department of Transportation State Highway Administration (M.D.O.T. S.H.A.) has closed the right lane on eastbound US 50/US 13 (Salisbury Bypass) at Northwood Drive due to significant pavement damage caused by a collapsed concrete channel under the road.

M.D.O.T S.H.A is assessing the damage and developing a repair plan, but they expect the work to take until the fall. M.D.O.T S.H.A District one Engineer Jay Meredith says, "The travel lane is damaged and the lane needs to remain closed until the repair is completed. M.D.O.T S.H.A is evaluating the extent of the damage and will begin the repair as soon as possible. This will create heavy eastbound delays, particularly on Friday afternoons during the summer travel season."

Due to the damage, officials say that a void in the road was created between the damaged section of pipe and the pavement. Crews will fix the culvert, fill the void and fix the concrete pavement. They say it involves cutting out the damaged concrete, pouring new concrete and letting it strengthen. During the process, officials say that drivers may not see crews working in the lane closures.

M.D.O.T. S.H.A is telling drivers to use US 50 Business (Salisbury Boulevard) as an alternate route for Friday travels. Drivers should stay alert, allow extra driving time, and slow down when traveling through work zones.

Meredith says, "M.D.O.T S.H.A will re-open the lane as soon as possible and we strongly encourage drivers to use 5-1-1 from a hands-free device to obtain real-time traffic conditions."

While S.H.A and its transportation partners work hard to keep safe traffic mobility in work zones, each driver is told to actively modify his or her driving style to help stop crashes. People are told to stay alert and look for reduced speed limits, narrow driving lanes and highway workers. Slow down and don't follow too closely.