A bridge replacement project in Proctorville tops the list of items Ohio Department of Transportation officials have to do in 2000.

Thursday, January 06, 2000

A bridge replacement project in Proctorville tops the list of items Ohio Department of Transportation officials have to do in 2000.

Ohio 7 will shut down in February, if weather permits, when contractors will begin work to replace the old bridge, said Holly Snedecor-Gray, ODOT District 9 public information officer.

The bridge is scheduled to be closed for about 120 days. During the closure, traffic will be detoured from Ohio 7 to Ohio 775 and County Road 403, also known as Irene Road.

Irene Road was closed for several months while it underwent extensive repairs to improve the structural soundness of the detour route, Mrs. Snedecor-Gray said.

Beyond the rehabilitation of a dilapidated bridge, the project also will pave the way for the addition of a third-lane in Proctorville in 2002, she said.

Estimated cost for the Big Paddy Creek Bridge project, including the work done on Irene Road, is about $1.2 million. The project should be completed by June 30, Mrs. Snedecor-Gray added.

Motorists traveling U.S. 52 could encounter minor road closures from time to time this year.

"We will be doing a bench cleaning on U.S. 52," Mrs. Snedecor-Gray said. "I don’t know when it will start but the project already has gone out to bid, and is slated for completion Aug. 31."

Bench cleaning is a fairly routine project, Mrs. Snedecor-Gray added.

"The project involves cleaning the benches – the notches in the hillside that catch debris that falls from above – above the roadway," she said. "The contractor will be cleaning that off and the ditches along U.S. 52. Traffic will be maintained with possible short term closures."

The closures will not interrupt traffic as much as the U.S. 52 landslide prevention project near the Ashland, Ky., bridge did this past year, Mrs. Snedecor-Gray said.

"It will depend on where the closure is," she said. "But we will close whatever lanes are needed to protect the safety of the traveling public."

The project also will include replacement or installation of concrete barriers. Estimated cost for the project is about $387,000.

Also on the list of priorities for the new year is installation of a traffic signal at the Ohio 7 and Ohio 243 intersection at Bradrick, Mrs. Snedecor-Gray said.

"It’s for safety – to address or enhance the safety of the intersection," she said. "And it does meet the warrant for a signal, combining accident data and traffic volume."

The project is scheduled to be awarded in March and is estimated to cost $65,000.

Although it’s a little early to think about all the projects lined up for the next construction season, ODOT officials are geared up to make substantial progress on other priority projects.

"The Ironton-Russell Bridge project is still on track for a public meeting sometime in the spring," Mrs. Snedecor-Gray said. "They expect to present four corridors and at least one alignment in each of the corridors to the public."

After the public meeting, officials will try to narrow the choices down, Mrs. Snedecor-Gray said.

"The consultant said he hopes to complete step five by the end of 2000," she said. "That is selecting the preferred alignment. They could even start on step six – the detailed study – but that would be late in the year and go into 2001."