Area residents traveling to and from Frederick County on I-270 at off-hours should begin allow extra time, especially if they traveling at night, for the next 10 months to a year as the State begins work to resurface the roadway.

The Maryland Department of Transportation State Highway Administration announced that it will resurface I-270 between the MD 121/Clarksburg Road and the Frederick County line beginning next week.

Last resurfaced 20 years ago, this more than four-mile section of I-270 in Clarksburg is a vital link between Frederick County and Washington D.C. and its suburbs. Crews will patch, mill (remove the top layer of asphalt), pave and restripe of I-270 and the interchange ramps at MD 121 and MD 109/Old Hundred Road. MDOT SHA will also replace aging guardrail, as well as improve highway drainage systems.

SHA spokesman Charlie Gischlar said preliminary work would begin sometime next week. The $6.7 million project will be complete summer 2018.

Most of the work will take place at night to minimize traffic impacts to the traveling public, however, MDOT SHA’s contractor, F.O. Day, Inc. of Rockville, is permitted to close one lane Sunday nights through Friday mornings between 9:00 pm and 5:00 am with occasional double lane closures after 11:00 pm during work days. Crews will also close and detour ramps to and from I-270 at MD 121 and MD 109 during paving operations between 10:00 pm and 5:00 am.

According to the SHA, an average of approximately 82,000 vehicles use this section of I-270 each day, with significantly less traffic during nighttime hours. Motorists wishing to use I-270 in the project area at night should plan extra travel time or consider using MD 355 (Frederick Road) as an alternate route.

File photos by Germantown Pulse. Audio courtesy MDOT SHA.