WHEELING — Motorists’ paths will look different on Interstate 70 between Elm Grove and Triadelphia’s Middle Creek area. Lane shifts in the traffic pattern there are coming, according to West Virginia Division of Highways officials.

The changes will come to the stretch of I-70 between Exit 5 in Elm Grove and Middle Creek in the coming weeks. Swank Construction is expected to move into the second phase of construction on bridges in that area as part of the ongoing I-70 Bridges Project.

“They are going to shift lanes around,” District 6 Engineer Tony Clark explained.

Clark said they expect to move traffic onto the newly renovated sections of bridges in those areas as they move forward with renovations on the older sections.

“There really shouldn’t be any delays,” Clark added. “It will just be a new thing (traffic pattern) to get used to.”

WVDOH Area Engineer Mike Witherow said the initial lane changeovers are expected to happen sometime by this weekend on the westbound side of I-70 on the Elm Grove interchange bridges. He said Swank is scheduled to make those changeovers during the nighttime hours to avoid traffic delays.

Witherow added they are expected to make additional lane changeovers on the I-70 bridges in the Middle Creek area in a few weeks.

Witherow said this is the second of three phases on the Elm Grove interchange part of the I-70 Bridges Project.

With the nearly three-year, $214 million I-70 Bridges Project just over halfway complete, Clark said Swank Construction is pushing to complete the bulk of the heavy construction and concrete work by the end of this year, weather pending.

The project includes the rehabilitation of 26 bridges on I-70 in Ohio County over a nearly three-year construction schedule with the full replacement of the Fulton Bridge spans.

Motorists are advised to be alert for changing traffic patterns and to expect delays. Any questions or concerns regarding the I-70 Bridges Project can be directed to the DOH hotline at 304-810-3214.