WVDOH estimates Toms Run Road Bridge on I-79 South will reopen within 24 hours

The West Virginia Division of Highways (WVDOH) and contractor Triton Construction Inc. are working together to repair a hole in a bridge deck that closed Interstate 79 South at the Toms Run Road Bridge early Monday, December 9, 2024. WVDOH District 4 Manager Earl Gaskins said the bridge should reopen within 24 hours.

The bridge is part of an approximately $62.5 million project to renovate 13 bridges along a 40-mile stretch of I-79 between Lost Creek and Interstate 68 near Morgantown. The contract was awarded in December 2022.

One lane of the bridge over Toms Run Road was already closed for bridge work when a hole was discovered in the other lane around 1 a.m. Monday, December 9, 2024. Gaskins believes last week's freeze and thaw cycle, in addition to traffic on the bridge, caused a previous patch on the bridge to fail.

Gaskins said contractors will use quick curing cement to repair the hole in the bridge. Provided the concrete cures in time, the bridge is expected to reopen on Tuesday, December 10, 2024.

In January 2024, Triton was awarded an additional $45 million contract to replace three pairs of I-79 bridges near mile marker 136, mile marker 140, and mile marker 160 near the West Virginia/Pennsylvania state line.

Once complete, the two contracts will replace or renovate all the major bridges on I-79 in north central West Virginia. The bridges date from the 1960s.

Southbound traffic is being detoured to Exit 146 (Goshen Road) while repairs are made to the bridge.

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