View I-40 / southern Beltline work in a larger map

Repaving work on Raleigh's southern Beltline this weekend will close lanes and send some drivers on a detour.

The state Department of Transportation will close the exit ramp from westbound Interstate 40 to the eastbound I-440 Outer Beltline from 9 p.m. tonight to 5 a.m. Monday.

A marked detour will send drivers west to the Rock Quarry Road exit, where they will be directed to loop back onto the eastbound lanes of the Outer Beltline.

Also this weekend, the Outer Beltline will be reduced to one lane from Rock Quarry to Poole Road.

A separate paving project on thenorthern Beltline will close some lanes on Sunday between Wade Avenue and Wake Forest Road, so road crews can apply permanent stripes to the pavement. The work will affect traffic between 9 a.m. Sunday and 6 a.m. Monday.

DOT will close one lane in each direction on the I-440 Beltline this Sunday so a road contractor can put down stripes on new pavement.

That'll be welcome news for drivers who had a hard time seeing the temporary stripes. Several folks have complained to the Road Worrier. A couple of weeks ago, Trudy Kappel asked:

Do you know if the lines painted on the newly repaved section of I440 are the final work? They vanish on a dark rainy night.

Sunday's striping work will take place between Wade Avenue and Wake Forest Road, and between 8 a.m. and 6 p.m.

Sure, those Inner / Outer Beltline markers make sense if you’re looking down at a Raleigh map – or perhaps flying high over the city in Sky 5.

From that vantage point, you get the picture: Inner Beltline runs clockwise around Raleigh, and Outer Beltline runs counter-clockwise. Many drivers like it this way.

But in the thick of traffic, a lot of us have a hard time knowing which way to turn. (Question: Will Inner take you toward Glenwood Ave. -- or toward New Bern Ave.? Answer: Where are you now?)

So after about 20 years of high-level hand-wringing, NCDOT has launched a project to get rid of those Innie and Outie signs. The work is part of a bigger job that also will widen I-40 in West Raleigh.

Is this a good idea?  Let me know what you think of the new map, which will divide our inner loop between East / West I-40 (southern section) and East / West I-440 (the rest of it).

Please e-mail me or leave a message at 919-829-4527.  Don't forget to include your name and your workday contact info.

Interstate 40 in western Wake County is in line for a resurfacing job that is expected to start next spring.

The state Board of Transportation is expected Thursday to approve a $13.8 million plan to repave six miles of I-40 from I-540 to the Wade Avenue exit, and a mile of the Wade Avenue extension.

The transportation board also is expected to reject bids for a DOT contract to replace old signs on the Raleigh Beltline. The lowest offer was nearly double DOT’s cost estimate of $834,000, so DOT will invite contractors to bid again on a job that had been expected to start this month.

The Beltline job includes plans to remove Inner / Outer Beltline signs that have confused motorists for years. . . .

Inner 440 Beltline, Outer 440 Beltline. It looks clear enough on a Raleigh highway map, but it can be confusing when you have to pick the right on-ramp in the thick of traffic.

DOT is making plans to simply the circuit ("Redesigned Beltline signs to drop 'Inner' and 'Outer'"). New signs will eliminate the need to think clockwise / counterclockwise. Now wherever you are, you'll be on east or west I-40 (southern Beltline), or on east or west I-440 (the rest).

Here are DOT's old map, and a new map.

Better? Do you have trouble finding your way around the Beltline and Raleigh? Let me know.

[Updated Monday.]