WHITE HALL, W.Va. (WBOY) – Drivers continue to deal with one-lane traffic on U.S. Route 250 in Marion County after a construction project’s completion date was pushed back a second time. 

Workers are taking rocks, trees and any loose material off the side of the hill along a stretch of U.S. Route 250 and putting up a fence and retaining wall.  

Hillside where crews took away lose material (WBOY Image)

The project began in February. The initial date for completion was July – but when that came around it was only halfway done.  

The completion date was pushed back to mid-November but when that came around the project was only 75% done.  

According to Jason Nelson, a West Virginia Division of Highways (DOH) engineer, the work will be done at the end of December and the two lanes of traffic will open back up.  

“We’ve run into a little bit more material in more areas than we were anticipating. That’s the reason for the little bit longer time,” Nelson said.  

The road between Muriale’s Kitchen and Wood’s Boat House in White Hall had to be shut down several times in 2021 because of things on the road being a danger for drivers.  

“There were times when the maintenance crews were going out at least once a week to remove rocks that had either fallen into the road or slipped into the ditch,” Nelson said. “We’ve already had some instances where rocks have come down off from off top due to some of the rain that we’ve had, and it’s performed the way that we expected it to. ” 

The project also includes putting in an 8-inch water line to help with drainage in the area so the road won’t flood.  

Road closed in (WBOY Image)

In the next few weeks, crews will switch traffic over to the lane further from the river. They will then complete the final phase of the work, which includes the stabilization of the riverbank with soil nails, shotcrete and rock blankets. 

Once the road is open in December, it will give some relief to the traffic on I-79 as construction projects continue there. Drivers will be able to use U.S. Route 250 as a detour off the highway bypassing the entire stretch of construction.  

However, the work isn’t completely done in December. The DOH must wait until asphalt plants open in the spring to then pave both lanes of U.S. Route 250. That is expected to happen in April 2023.

The project’s total cost is $3,472,00.