Roadway roundup: Appling-Harlem bridge, Ironman to affect drivers

AUGUSTA, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) - Traffic this coming weekend will be affected by the Ironman 70.3 competition.

Roads will be affected from 4 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sunday.

The triathlon will begin at 7 a.m. Sunday with a 1.2-mile swim from the Augusta Riverwalk Marina to the Boathouse Community Center on Riverfront Drive. From there, the athletes will transition to the 56-mile cycling leg that will wind through south Augusta. The cyclists will return to the transition area at the Boathouse to begin the 13.1-mile run leg of the race through downtown Augusta. 

If your travels land you in the middle of the competition, remain where you are, enjoy the race and proceed safely when you can, organizers suggest.

Updated traffic notifications and alternate routes will be available on Google Maps and the Waze App on race day, Sept. 25. 

The first group of bicyclists will take the route at about 7:19 a.m. Organizers anticipate all roads to be clear by 3 p.m. The cyclists will start on Greene Street. They will turn onto Fifth Street then merge onto Gordon Highway to begin the ride to south Augusta.

Roads along the route will be open to traffic, but major intersections will be monitored by law enforcement officers.

Organizers expect the leaders to begin the run at about 9 a.m. According to the race cut-off time, runners must be off the course by 6 p.m. On Greene and Reynolds streets, one lane of traffic along the route will be designated for the race, with cones marking the circuit. Broad Street will be closed to vehicle traffic from 13th Street to East Boundary. Motorists are encouraged to park on streets not affected by the race course.

The following areas will be designated no-parking areas from 4 a.m. to 6 p.m.:

• Broad Street from East Boundary to 13th Street, including center parking bays.
• Reynolds Street from East Boundary to Bay Street.
• Eighth Street from Reynolds Street to Broad Street.

Roads affected by bike course:

• Greene Street, 7:20-10:15 a.m.
• Fifth Street, 7:20-10:15 a.m.
• Gordon Highway, 7:20-10:30 a.m.
• Gordon Highway flyover 7:20-10:30 a.m.
• Mike Padgett Highway 7:20 a.m. to 1 p.m.
• Old Waynesboro Road 7:30-11:45 a.m.
• McDade Road, 7:40-11:15 a.m.
• Brown Road, 7:45-11:20 a.m.
• McCombs Road, 8 a.m. to noon
• Broome Road, 8 a.m. to noon
• Hephzibah-McBean, 8:10 a.m. to 12:15 p.m.
• Horseshoe Road, 8:15 a.m. to 12:45 p.m.
• 4-H Club Road, 8:30 a.m. to 1:10 p.m.
• Doug Barnard Parkway to Gordon Highway, 8:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.
• Gordon Highway and Taylor Road, 9 a.m. to 2:05 p.m.
• Taylor Road and Fourth Street, 9 a.m. to 2:05 p.m.
• Watkins Street and East Boundary, 9:05 a.m. to 2:10 p.m.
• Sand Bar Ferry Road, 9:05 a.m. to 2:15 p.m.

Roads affected by run course:

• Broad Street eastbound from East 13th Street to East Boundary, 4 a.m. to 6 p.m.
• Broad Street westbound from East Boundary to 12th Street, 4 a.m. to 6 p.m.
• East Boundary southbound from Reynolds Street to Greene Street, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
• Greene Street eastbound from East Boundary to 13th Street, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
• 13th Street northbound from Greene Street to Broad Street, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
• 12th Street from Broad Street to Jones Street, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
• Jones Street from 12th Street to 10th Street, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
• 10th Street from Jones Street to Reynolds Street, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
• Eighth Street from Reynolds Street to Broad Street, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
• Reynolds Street from 10th Street to Bay Street, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
• Bay Street from Reynolds Street to Reynolds Street, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.

For more information and to download course maps, visit https://www.ironman.com/im703-augusta.

New bridge opening Tuesday at Appling-Harlem interchange

APPLING, Ga. - A long-awaited change is coming this week when the new bridge opens at the Appling-Harlem Road interchange with Interstate 20.

Improvements have been taking place there in part to accommodate traffic for the new Amazon fulfillment center and adjacent sorting center.

If weather permits, traffic will shift at 9 a.m. Tuesday onto the onto its newly constructed bridge carrying Appling-Harlem Road over I-20. When it’s time, a pilot car will guide traffic onto the new bridge, demonstrating the new configuration on both sides.

Crews will put up barrels and barricades to block the old bridge.

A construction team also will close off the westbound on-ramp to Interstate 20 and it will then remain closed for eight days. The closure is necessary to raise the grade between the westbound on-ramp to Interstate 20 and the old roadway.

The ramp is expected to reopen Sept. 28.

While the westbound on-ramp is closed, drivers wishing to enter westbound I-20 will be detoured to Georgia Highway 223, where they will travel west and use U.S. 78 to access the interstate.

Another current traffic pattern will remain in place as well: those wanting to use the eastbound on-ramp to I-20 will still be required to travel southward on Appling-Harlem Road to Pumpkin Center, where they will utilize the roundabout to get into the northbound lane and then access the on-ramp.

Lewiston Road construction continues near I-20

GROVETOWN, Ga. - Contractors with E. R. Snell will continue construction activities this week related to the roadway-widening project for Lewiston Road.

Weather permitting, here’s what’s planned through Friday:

• All traffic lanes will shift from the east side of the right-of-way to the new pavement section on the west side to allow road construction to continue. The traffic shift will be from Columbia Road to the Mill Branch Road starting Tuesday.
• The right lane of the westbound Interstate 20 exit ramp to Lewiston Road will be closed for several months. There will be one lane open on the westbound I-20 exit ramp to Lewiston Road.
• A lane closure is planned through Sept. 30 for the eastbound I-20 exit ramp to Lewiston Road. There will be one lane open on the eastbound I-20 exit ramp to Lewiston Road.
• A lane closure is planned for the westbound I-20 on-ramp to Atlanta through Sept. 30, 2022. There will be one lane open on the westbound I-20 on-ramp to Atlanta.

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