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New traffic pattern in Stafford County will have you driving on the 'wrong' side of the road

A Diverging Diamond Interchange is set to open in Stafford County Saturday morning. The $195 million project promises to ease congestion

STAFFORD COUNTY, Va. — A new Diverging Diamond Interchange will open Saturday morning at 7 a.m. in Stafford County. The traffic pattern is one of just a handful in Virginia. 

The purpose is to ease congestion and improve travel in the area. 

The Virginia Department of Transportation will open the interchange over Interstate 95 at Courthouse Road, Exit 140. The nearly $200 million dollar project is expected to expand travel capacity and improve safety near Courthouse Road. 

The Diverging Diamond Interchange will briefly shift vehicles to the other side of the road on new overpass bridges. Essentially it looks like drivers are on the 'wrong' side of the road. 

With this new pattern, left turns and yielding to oncoming traffic will be eliminated. Instead, drivers will simply merge left onto the I-95 northbound and southbound ramps without having to stop at a signal.

On Saturday, with help from Virginia State Police and local law enforcement, VDOT crews will open the new interchange to drivers. 

VDOT recommends driving through the interchange over the weekend with lighter traffic, before having to go through it for the first time during rush hour. 

For about two more weeks, drivers exiting from I-95 South onto Courthouse Road will remain in a detour pattern. 

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