WASHINGTON — D.C. Route 295 runs parallel to the Anacostia River, but sometimes the road itself looks like a river. With heavy rain in the forecast, city officials say they are making progress in preventing future problems with stormwater.

The Kenilworth Avenue Rehabilitation Project began last summer. Crews have been repairing concrete, fencing and lighting. In a statement provided to WTOP, the District Department of Transportation said the project also aims to improve drainage.

“[Six] new catch basins are now connected to manholes, and the site is prepared for the upcoming rain,” said Terry Owens with DDOT.

Route 295 has flooded over the years at several low spots near Benning Road and Nannie Helen Burroughs Avenue.

Owens said that DDOT is ” … also upgrading the curbs [and] gutters, and adding a new median and installation of permanent Jersey barriers.”

The infrastructure improvements on the northbound side of the highway are expected to be wrapped up by June. The southbound drainage work is still under design and scheduled for completion next year, DDOT said.

Midday and weekend lane closures have led to very long northbound delays, at times in excess of an hour, between Pennsylvania and Eastern avenues in recent months.