
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: FRIDAY, August 18, 1995                   TAG: 9508180033
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: B3   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: RICHARD FOSTER
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short

SMITH MOUNTAIN LAKE ROAD TO GET $6.6 MILLION BYPASS

Construction and design plans for the proposed $6.6 million Moneta bypass on Virginia 122 were approved Thursday by the Commonwealth Transportation Board at its monthly meeting in Richmond.

The 1.8-mile bypass will help reduce congestion on Virginia 122 - the primary artery for Smith Mountain Lake - and will improve safety at the crossing where 122 meets Norfolk Southern Corp. railroad tracks. Construction will begin late next year or early in 1997.

"The need to improve traffic movement there is great," said Virginia Department of Transportation spokeswoman Laura Bullock.

In 1993, about 4,300 vehicles traveled the stretch of road each day, she said. By 2018, the department projects 7,800 vehicles will be using the road daily.

Also, Bullock said, the project will eliminate a railroad crossing, which VDOT is trying to do across the state because of the potential for accidents.

When the bypass is completed, probably in mid- to late 1998, traffic will be routed west of the existing road and over the railroad tracks. Two years after the bypass opens, the railroad crossing will be closed to automobiles.

One resident will be displaced because of the bypass, Bullock said. Ten buildings, including an unoccupied house and five farm buildings, will be demolished to make way for the road.

by CNB