Delays expected as roadwork will close part of busy highway in Lexington County

Noah Feit
·2 min read

Drivers won’t be able to enter or exit a stretch of a busy highway running through Lexington County because of an ongoing roadwork project, the South Carolina Department of Transportation said Tuesday.

A lane closure on Interstate 20 will result in nightly detours and possible delays for anyone heading out of Columbia toward Augusta.

The right lane for all westbound traffic on I-20 will be closed at night in between mile markers 61 and 54, SCDOT said in a news release. That affects all traffic going toward and Exit 58 (the connection to U.S. 1), and Exit 55 (the junction with S.C. 6).

Drivers on U.S. 1 and S.C. 6 won’t be able to enter I-20 from those exits because the on ramps will be closed, SCDOT said.

The lane closure will begin Tuesday night and is scheduled to continue through Friday, according to the release. The closure starts daily at 8 p.m. and will remain blocked for roadwork until 6 a.m. the following day, SCDOT said.

Drivers looking to use Exits 58 and 55 will have to head west to Exit 51, where they can enter I-20 eastbound and backtrack, according to the release.

A detour will be set up for drivers looking to enter the highway where the roadwork has closed the on ramps, SCDOT said.

At Exit 55, drivers will be directed along Two Notch Road to Longs Pond Road, where they can get on I-20 at Exit 51. At Exit 58, drivers will take Dooley Road to Two Notch Road and follow the same detour, according to the release.

Message board signs along U.S. 1, S.C. 6, Longs Pond Road, and I-20 will display detour directions, according to the release.

SCDOT is warning drivers to use caution and plan for possible delays.

The work is part of a major traffic shift for a road widening project. Since 2019, when work on the eastbound lanes started before switching to the westbound side of I-20, drivers have been shifted in between Exit 51 (Longs Pond Road) to Exit 61 (U.S. 378), and are separated by a concrete barrier.

When it’s finished, the project covering 11 miles of I-20 will add a third inside lane in both directions aimed at reducing traffic congestion, according to the release. Officials said the project is expected to be completed in the summer of 2021.