Police have restricted vehicle movement on the Matara-bound carriageway of the Southern Expressway to a single lane between Gelanigama and Dodangoda due to ongoing maintenance, with congestion expected through the affected stretches.
The repair works are being carried out on Friday on two sections of the Matara-bound side: between kilometre markers 17–19 and 28–30.
To manage flow during the works, traffic in both directions is being diverted onto the Colombo-bound carriageway. Police urged motorists to exercise caution, follow posted instructions and expect delays.
The Southern Expressway (E01) is Sri Lanka’s busiest tolled motorway, linking Colombo with Matara via Galle. The Gelanigama–Dodangoda corridor sits at the northern end of the highway and carries heavy commuter and freight volumes between the capital and the south. Friday’s restrictions come on the May Day public holiday, when leisure travel typically lifts expressway demand.
The Road Development Authority routinely schedules expressway pavement works on long-weekend stretches when commercial traffic is lighter, though the same dates often coincide with peak holiday outbound flows.
Construction on the Central Expressway Rambukkana–Galagedara section is also set to begin in May. The expressway network generated Rs. 536 million in Avurudu holiday revenue.
