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Detours began on Monday, Aug. 7 at Route 15/360 and will be in place until the end of September as construction on the Keysville roundabout continues.

According to Len Stevens, District Communications Manager with the Virginia Department of Transportation (VDOT) has  Route 15/360 Business at the intersection of Route 15 due to construction activity. 

“Please use extra care when driving in the area,” Steven said. “VDOT will post adequate signs indicating the detour route.” 

Plans for the roundabout have been in the works for close to six years with VDOT saying due to safety concerns and accident history, the project will improve the intersection with a roundabout concept. 

Just weeks ago construction workers began to move dirt making way for the roundabout. 

Stevens said The project includes grading, drainage structures, water line utility work, paving, pavement marking, and signing.

The project is expected to be completed by June 2024.

More on the Keysville roundabout

In 2017 the proposed $5.2 million roundabout at the intersection of Routes 15 and U.S. 360 made it through the second round of scoring under the new SMART SCALE prioritization process used by the state’s Commonwealth Transportation Board (CTB).

According to Stevens, construction funding for the project includes both state and federal sources.

Following a VDOT virtual public hearing in November 2020 to hear comments and concerns, a safety issue was brought into question that led VDOT engineers to redesign a portion of the roundabout.

In a 2021 interview, former VDOT Communications Manager Paula Jones said the primary issue was addressing a safety concern by eliminating a high-speed conflict point by removing the Route 15 southbound ramp onto 360 westbound. “That traffic would access 360 westbound by the Route 15 northbound ramp,” Jones said.

The new design directs traffic traveling on Route 15 South into the roundabout, then take the first exit to head west on Route 360.

Focus on the design

According to transportation documents, the current intersection has a major road (two-way, not divided) as well as an off-ramp and an entrance leading to an off-ramp, all connecting at a three-approach stop-sign intersection that is in a grade curve,” county leaders said in the application to state transportation officials. “Sight distance, as well as traffic flow, currently contributes to driver error. This project will replace the stop-sign intersection with a roundabout to allow for a more fluid entrance and exit to the off-ramps and take the sight-distance issue out of the equation. The Charlotte County Industrial Park is along the route of this project, and the Heartland Business Park is adjacent to the project area.”