Virginia Roads - I-295

I-295


All photos are northbound.


Across the James River on the Varina-Enon Bridge, courtesy Lou Corsaro.


Still in the middle of Exit 25 signage but already giving information for Exit 28, courtesy Lou Corsaro. Well, I don't know about information, so it's giving blank signs with miniature shields instead of "EXIT 28".


NB and facing slightly west (toward sunset) at the Shady Grove Rd. overpass near Exit 38, by day and by night.


I-295 was extended to the west to provide an adequate bypass for I-64 and not just I-95, but the original roadway went straight back onto I-95 along what's now a left exit. As you can see, it had three lanes when it did this instead of two with a wide shoulder, and I imagine there were different merge dynamics at the I-95 junction. (Even so, 3 miles? Really? At least wait for the merge.) I-295 is a great bypass of Richmond, with much less traffic than the nightmare bottleneck on I-95 between Richmond and I-85. although traffic is growing over the years as development works its way outward.


Stay on the I-295 "through exit" and find these awkward signs for the C-D road that facilitates the other movements at the I-95 interchange in close proximity to US 1. Exit numbers are the preferred method of distributing people to businesses, and "TO" is not needed for a C-D road that only serves the listed exits. The exit tab would still be that much wider than the rest of the sign, but somewhat less egregiously.


Speaking of "egregious," the SB C-D road carries all four exits. This one has a much easier solution - just sign it as Exit 43!


How hard is it to center a shield?


Construction at the "northern" (more like western) end of I-295. It was constructed as a cloverleaf interchange in case the freeway would be extended as a full beltway, but that died years ago and there is now development in the way. John Rolfe Pkwy., a surface street, was in fact constructed right in the middle of future I-295 right-of-way. So in 2009, the half-cloverleaf with a nasty I-64 EB weave was being converted to have a direct ramp from I-64 EB to I-295... I'll call it SB, but grudgingly, seen here. (I-295's direction simply isn't signed from I-64. It should be "East" at least until hitting I-95.)


The I-295 "NB" cloverleaf ramp to I-64 EB remains intact, so it became part of the Richmond Road Meet in 2012. It's easy to see how this would have been the through lanes of the beltway.

Exit 28 to US 60
Exit 43A-B to I-95
Exit 43C-D to US 1
Exit 53 to I-64
Exit 53B to US 250
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