Starting August 26, motorists can no longer turn left onto Route 29 from Hydraulic Road. The recent closure of the left-turn lanes is the Virginia Department of Transportation’s latest effort to improve traffic flow at the intersection.
The change in traffic pattern was completed overnight, from August 25 to 26, with the left-turn lanes from Hydraulic Road onto Route 29 closed by rush hour on Monday, August 26. Left-turn lanes from Route 29 onto Hydraulic Road remain open.
In addition to closing the left-turn lanes, VDOT will also modify the lane patterns on Hydraulic Road.
“Headed eastbound [on Hydraulic], we’re going to have two through lanes there and a right-turn lane,” says VDOT Project Manager Will Stowe. “Headed westbound towards Albemarle High School, we’re going to keep two through lanes and we’re going to have two dedicated right-turn lanes.”
According to Stowe, the vertical posts (also known as bollards) around the protected right-turn lane from Hydraulic onto 29 North will also be removed to create a safer pedestrian crossing.
A VDOT traffic study of the intersection indicates that closing the left-turn lanes on Hydraulic will improve traffic flow at the crossing significantly. Time previously allotted to the left-turn signals will be redistributed to other movements.
“We’re estimating and expecting about a 20 percent better travel time along Hydraulic and about a 30 percent better travel time along Route 29,” says Stowe.
For drivers looking to turn left onto Route 29, the change may be jarring, but there are several alternate paths available.
“There’s multiple ways,” says Stowe. “It really depends on where you’re going.”
Heading eastbound on Hydraulic, drivers can access 29 North by crossing the intersection, making a U-turn at the newly constructed roundabout, and turning right on 29 North.
Motorists traveling westbound on Hydraulic can access 29 South in two ways, depending on their route and destination. Both of Stowe’s recommended routes utilize Seminole Court. “You can either take a right at the new roundabout that we’ve built and go to Hillsdale, then Seminole Court, and then take a left onto 29 South,” he says. “You can [also] go up to the intersection [of Hydraulic Road and Route 29], take a right on 29 [North], and make a U-turn at Seminole Court.”
Rather than using the roundabout and backroads, drivers traveling westbound on the 250 bypass can more easily access 29 South utilizing the left exit after Hydraulic Road. The “Chicken Strip” can be accessed using the exit onto 29 North immediately after the turn onto Hydraulic from the bypass.
While Stowe and VDOT are optimistic the permanent lane closure will improve travel time through the intersection, other residents are split. Online chatter about the new traffic pattern has spanned multiple platforms, with at least two Reddit threads and several Nextdoor posters discussing the VDOT announcement.
“I don’t use that for a commute or regularly for anything BUT it’s obvious that no one at VDOT truly drives in the area of Charlottesville! This is going to create so many u-turns on 29. Insane,” said Reddit user Adventurous-Emu-755. Others in the thread were more supportive, with user WHSRWizard commenting, “I actually think this could be OK. You’ll have to make a left somewhere else on to 29 or make a U-turn at the Post Office, but it should help move traffic through that intersection quicker.”
For supporters and skeptics alike, more information about the ongoing Route 29 improvements can be found at vdot.virginia.gov.