Norfolk, Va. - Navigating downtown Norfolk just became more painful.
An already busy intersection at E. City Hall Avenue and St. Paul's Boulevard is now decorated with traffic cones and detour signs. And drivers aren't the only ones suffering.
Just ask Hassan Ali who has to navigate his way through detours set up for those on foot.
"It's annoying because of the traffic, I mean look at the traffic that’s built up now," Ali said.
It’s also frustrating for drivers coming from MacArthur Center or Waterside Drive.
From the mall, making a left turn from E. City Hall Avenue to St. Paul's Boulevard is a no-go.
From Waterside Drive, making a left from St. Paul's Boulevard to E. City Hall is also a no-go.
Instead, drivers headed eastbound on E. City Hall are being rerouted across St. Paul's to Tidewater Drive and around to Brambleton.
These detours and lane closures come on top of others just several miles away at E. Princess Anne Road as well as Tidewater Drive and E. Little Creed Road.
But Public Works spokesperson Jeneen White says the work Downtown was unexpected.
"It's a critical systems replacement of our downtown network; it's an old system," White explained.
City officials insist crews will work 24-hours a day, seven days a week to speed up the process.
White says they hope to wrap up the work in early November.
"It's not the most comfortable thing for motorists. That's why we have officers out there to ensure that everything flows quickly and safely," White said.
