Upcoming lane switches will mark halfway point for Lafayette Street Interchange project

Crews were preparing to make more lane switches on U.S. Route 50/63 in Jefferson City Wednesday.

On Friday, December 11th crews will divert both eastbound lanes on Route 50/63onto the newly constructed westbound lanes and across the recently built westbound Route 50/63 bridge over Lafayette Street.

As part of the change, crews will close the eastbound on ramp from Lafayette Street to Route 50/63. This will allow them to work on the new eastbound Route 50/63 bridge and the future eastbound lanes.

The westbound Route 50/63 bypass, which guides traffic down the new Lafayette off ramp, across Lafayette Street and back onto westbound 50/63, will remain in place. Motorists will still not have access to Lafayette Street from the bypass and the Clark Avenue on ramp from westbound 50/63 will remain closed.

This new change in traffic flow is expected to remain in place until the summer of 2016. It also marks the halfway point for the project.

The work is all part of the two-year, 20.3 million dollar Lafayette Street Interchange project.The project started in late 2014 and is expected to wrap up in the fall of 2016.

The project includes building a new interchange at Route 50/63 and Lafayette Street and expanding the Whitton Expressway from Monroe Street to Lafayette Street and from Lafayette to Clark Avenue. The project also includes improving six bridges along the corridor.

The Chestnut Street bridge over Route 50/63 and the westbound Route 50/63 bridge over Lafayette Street are already finished. Four others remain under construction.

The project is all an effort toimprove traffic flow and safety in the area.

The Missouri Department of Transportation has posted a map of the upcoming changes, information on traffic impact summaries and weekly construction updates on its website.

Motorists can also call 1-888-ASK-MoDOT (275-6636) or visit MoDOT’s Central District on Facebook for more information.