UPDATED: Jan. 17 at 1:25 p.m. - Lane closures will now take place Wednesday night instead of Tuesday night as originally planned by the GDOT.

Lane closures are planned on I-85 Wednesday night near the Mall of Georgia as crews work to install new interstate signs.

The right lane and right shoulder of the northbound and southbound lanes will be closed from milepost 114 to milepost 116. The work zone covers an area just north of the I-985/I-85 split to one mile north of exit 115, the Mall of Georgia/Highway 20 exit. Dacula-bound travelers may experience delays.

A temporary barrier wall will be put in place to protect the work zone. Work is expected to begin at 9 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 18 and continue until 5 a.m. Thursday, Jan. 19. 

According to a Georgia Department of Transportation press release, the interstate signs scheduled for replacement are old and losing their retro-reflectivity, meaning signs are not as visible as they should be in low light conditions.

“The signs may look fine during the day but in low light conditions, they can be difficult to see,” explained State Traffic Engineer Kathy Zahul in a released statement. “The new signs will be more visible from a longer distance allowing motorists to read them from farther away. This gives drivers more time to make driving decisions that improves safety for everyone. These signs are the oldest in our system so they will be replaced first.”

The sign replacement is part of a statewide project.

For information on the Department of Transportation, visit www.dot.ga.gov; you also may follow Georgia DOT on Facebook and Twitter.

For up-to-date local traffic conditions, visit the Dacula Patch Traffic and Gas page.