UPDATE: Whether it's your morning or afternoon commute that takes you along eastbound Interstate 14/US 190, you may want to plan an alternate route or be prepared for syrupy-slow traffic again this evening and tomorrow morning.

Monday afternoon, TxDOT closed eastbound lanes between Paddy Hamilton Road in Nolanville and FM 2410/Simmons Road in Belton. The closure caught many drivers off guard, and caused many to be stuck in morning traffic Tuesday.

Now there's word from TxDOT that the closure will continue for another 24 hours. If you're driving along eastbound I-14/190 Tuesday evening or Wednesday morning, prepare for delays.

According to Kenneth Roberts with TxDOT's Waco District, the closure is necessary in order to conduct a detailed assessment of existing drill shafts supporting the structure at the Nolan Creek crossing. Crews are waiting for water levels from recent rains to drop so they can make a proper assessment and begin repairs to two of 36 columns supporting the bridge.

"Eastbound I-14 traffic will remain diverted to the frontage road (South Central TX Expressway) at Exit 294 (Paddy Hamilton Rd) and reenter I-14 just east of the Simmons Road intersection in Belton," Roberts wrote in a news release. "Northbound and southbound Simmons Road cross traffic at the South Central Texas Expressway in Belton will be detoured east and west, as necessary."

Roberts asked that driver be on the lookout for traffic control personnel and construction equipment in the area.

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If you were stuck in traffic Tuesday morning while traveling along US 190/I-14, this is why.

TxDOT officials said crews closed eastbound lanes between Paddy Hamilton Road in Nolanville and FM 2410 in Belton. The closure was necessary, they said, in order to conduct a detailed assessment of existing drill shafts supporting the structure at the Nolan Creek crossing.

The closure began Monday afternoon, but crews continued their assessment Tuesday morning and were expected to be at work until Tuesday afternoon around 2 PM.

Eastbound traffic was being diverted to the frontage road (South Central Texas Expressway) at Exit 294/Paddy Hamilton Road, then being moved back onto the highway just east of the FM 2410 intersection in Belton.

We reached out to TxDOT's Waco Division to ask if any westbound closures were planned. A representative told us there are currently no plans to close westbound lanes.

An 18-wheeler crash in Belton also caused delays along southbound I-35 near the I-14 overpass early Tuesday morning.

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