Imagine a typical evening commute on the often-congested Interstate 95 northbound through Wilmington. Slaloming drivers jockey for open space in adjacent lanes with those who are reluctant to give an inch to competing commuters.

Now, imagine the same rush-hour, but with stressed northbound drivers squeezed onto the opposite side of the interstate, sharing those lanes with southbound commuters.

That scenario will occur in 2021 when Delaware's largest city becomes the site of a massive, nearly $200 million reconstruction of I-95's bridges, ramps and pavement.

It is expected to be two years of traffic-snarling repair on the critical Northeast Corridor link that, at times, will close half of the highway and fill it with heavy machinery instead of cars.

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At the very least, commuters have time to prepare. Yet, foresight won't conquer all of the logistical puzzles that are certain to cause headaches for tens of thousands of drivers.

"We go into this project knowing we're going to have major impacts on traffic," said Jason Hastings, the Delaware Department of Transportation's chief bridge engineer.

Because of its sheer size — extending from I-495 to the Brandywine bridge — the project likely will become Delaware's biggest congestion-causing construction ever. Its effects will extend throughout the city and, during the toughest commuting times, up and down the regional corridor.

"Rather than stagger the construction and put Wilmington at four or five years of traffic nightmares, we said, ‘Let’s go into this, let’s combine it into one project,'” Hastings said.

The two years of construction, at times, will divert northbound drivers to the southbound side to share lanes. After work is complete on the northbound side, both directions of vehicles will then squeeze onto the southbound side.

Ramps will be closed but at least one city off-ramp should be open at any time, Hastings said.

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Transportation planners expect thousands of vehicles to spill onto local streets during lane closures, increasing traffic on Market, Walnut, and Washington streets, as well as Maryland Avenue, Northeast Boulevard, Augustine Cut-off, and Baynard Boulevard.

Downtown Wilmington commuters will be encouraged, when possible, to veer onto I-495, using its exits to travel to the core of the city.

Throughout the two years, hospitals and first responders expect to be in close contact with DelDOT. Medics and doctors must always know the fastest route through the city at any given time, said Mark Lorenz, an administrator at Nemours/A.I. duPont Hospital for Children.

"If we have impacts on our commutes, then we'll have impacts on our staffing," he said. "But with advance notice, we'll be able to plan our routes."

Residents who live near the expressway — which first dissected the city more than 50 years ago — again will be asked to adjust.

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The construction will reverberate into their surrounding neighborhoods as vehicles opt for those streets during rush hour, construction noise echoes into homes, and even basketball players are forced from lighted courts that sit under the cover of the I-95 viaduct.

"It's a big inconvenience for the whole entire community," said Sirod Pennewell, a University of Delaware student, who was playing at the Adams Street courts on Tuesday afternoon.

In return for the sacrifices, Wilmington will get what DelDOT engineers say is needed maintenance to the skeletal structures of the mile-long viaduct and numerous bridges that make up the 54-year-old artery.

Construction crews also will make safety improvements, demolishing the I-95 ramp from South Jackson Street and rebuilding, with a different design, the ramp from 2nd Street.

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Finally, they will repave the entire segment of highway between the Christina and Brandywine rivers, repair overpasses, replace signs and install new guardrails, among other smaller tasks.

Delaying the repairs only would lead to more costly ones later, DelDOT says.

John Rago, deputy chief of staff for the mayor's office, in a statement, said Wilmington residents rely on the interstate as if it were a local road, driving short distances along the highway to quickly get across the city.

"That fact alone will create problems when the interstate lanes are closed," he said.

Neighbors have their say

As the project still is two years away, many residents who spoke with The News Journal said it is difficult to digest the scope of the construction.

Mardell Coates, from the Westside neighborhood, said the looming project will be on the agenda at her next third-Wednesday community meeting. While cautious, Coates suspects traffic impacts to be more severe across I-95 than in her neighborhood.

Daily congestion generally is heavier there, as it's closer to downtown, she said.

Living in one near-downtown neighborhood is Jessica Mullaney of Trinity Vicinity. Morning and evening rush hours already see long lines of vehicles regularly piling up adjacent to the neighborhood, along Delaware Avenue.

When construction begins in 2021, Mullaney said she is expecting "rough times."

"But it's nice having the information out this far in advance," she said in an email.

Farther to the south in Browntown, John Kwiatkowski said the construction is not the biggest concern in the neighborhood. That would be conquering the negative impression outsiders have of the community, he said.

Still, if too many commuters spill onto Maryland Avenue, the neighborhood's primary artery, traffic could slow considerably, he said.

"Maryland Avenue can get tight at certain times of the day now," he said.

The preparation

Before the project begins, transportation crews are fast-tracking bite-sized projects on I-495 and on many of the city streets that will carry vehicles that otherwise would be on I-95.

"This is going to have a major impact on I-95 and we want to ensure that the surrounding road network has been addressed before this project begins," DelDOT spokesman C.R. McLeod said.

One such project will occur where Walnut Street curves to become Front Street and ultimately connects with MLK Boulevard. Construction crews will remove the sweeping curve and build a standard perpendicular intersection.

Front Street also will get two additional lanes as well as a sidewalk that is compliant with standards set by the Americans with Disabilities Act. The result will return the surrounding road network to a grid, DelDOT says.

City streets were overwhelmed four years ago after DelDOT shut down I-495 for most of a summer because pilings holding up its bridge over the Christina River were tilting dangerously.

The closure between Exits 2 and 3 cut off a key bypass for the East Coast transportation grid, funneling motorists onto detours across nearby roads and causing a far-reaching impact on the interstate network.

Travel times skyrocketed, delaying commuters and business shipments, which infuriated truck drivers over lost time, increased fuel costs and inconvenience.

Residents complained about noise and exhaust from the resulting traffic jams.

"It caused a lot of road damage, a lot of traffic jams, a lot of commotion," Eden Park resident Howard Laws told The News Journal at the time. "I won't even talk about the pollution that it caused."

To stave off such negative consequences during the I-95 closure, DelDOT has created an advisory group made of businesses and neighborhood leaders. The group first gathered during the summer and will continue meeting about every three months, said Hastings, DelDOT's chief bridge engineer.

The biggest concern of businesses within the group is ensuring that customers can access their shops and restaurants, and that employees will get to work on time.

To ensure the goal is met, DelDOT will announce closures in advance, and place numerous mobile signs on highways, he said.

Buses also should be used better during closures, Hastings said.

“We’re working with DART to coordinate alternative ways, bus routes into and out,” he said. “So that we can get more cars off of the road.”

It is DART's decision whether to add additional routes, Hastings said.

Transit in Wilmington's core has been a controversial topic during the past year after the state removed most buses from Rodney Square, which had been Wilmington's central transit hub.

The News Journal later revealed in a report that businesses had been lobbying Gov. John Carney for such a move, months before it was announced to the public.

One of those businesses was the Buccini/Pollin Group, Wilmington's largest landowner.

BPG's Michael Hare said more buses are not needed, but more people should ride the buses that already operate in the area.

“Encouraging mass transit is always a good thing,” said Hare, BPG's executive vice president for development.

BPG is among the businesses represented in DelDOT's advisory group. Its success relies on that of its many corporate and retail tenants.

Hare said company officials are withholding judgment on the final highway construction plans before determining just how deeply they may impact the businesses.

“I don’t want to say we’re still 'wait and see,' because we’ve been invited to be part of the process, but we’re patient,” he said.

The construction is set to take place just as the city has rebranded itself, and specifically Market Street, as a place to work and play for both residents and car-driving suburbanites.

Rago, in his statement, did not address a question about whether the construction may deter people from that area, except to say his office is working closely with DelDOT in its planning.

The plans, which govern the timing and coordination of specific jobs within the larger project, will be finalized next year, Hastings said.

First, Amtrak must agree to the specifications of the viaduct rehabilitation, he said, as the structure crosses passenger rails.

Recently, this has been "the biggest challenge," he said.

Separate transportation project managers also have told The News Journal in the past that Amtrak project approvals often become arduous processes, involving multiple levels of officials approving construction plans.

"We work in their right of way and constitutionally they are higher in the hierarchy than the state DOT," Hastings said. "They have their own internal processes."

An Amtrak spokeswoman declined an interview.

In an emailed statement, she said, "discussions are in the early stages so it's premature to discuss in depth the project and potential impact on Amtrak operations."

Public buy-in?

While plans await final approval, the basic project outline is clear: Crews will tear up existing concrete of the highway's viaduct and nearby bridges and then repair the structures underneath.

They will repave the surface while eliminating or replacing bridge joints that create noisy seams along the highway. The highway's existing barriers also will be replaced, and the Second Street on-ramp will be completely rebuilt and the Jackson Street ramp eliminated.

While the viaduct project will surely slow commuters, directing them onto various alternate routes through Wilmington, Pennewell hopes city and state officials don't forget about its effects elsewhere.

Underneath the viaduct along Adams Street sit Wilmington's only lighted and covered public basketball courts, he said. Dozens of people play there each week, he said, some of whom use it as a refuge from tougher living situations in surrounding neighborhoods.

"People have been playing here for decades," he said. "When it rains, it's shelter for anyone playing basketball."

Hastings said DelDOT is considering a plan to move the courts to a grassy strip adjacent to the interstate.

“That’s our proposal. We need buy-in from the public and the city,” he said.

Contact Karl Baker at kbaker@delawareonline.com or (302) 324-2329. Follow him on Twitter @kbaker6.