May 7—Warmer spring temperatures mark the kickoff of road construction season for crews, which are out in full force in Vigo County and across the Wabash Valley.
Motorists in Terre Haute this week experienced one-lane traffic along Blakely and Fruitridge avenues as crews milled up asphalt and replaced it with new asphalt.
"This is part of our Community Crossings project. We are resurfacing Blakely and Fruitridge avenues from Wabash Avenue to Maple Avenue," said Marcus Maurer, assistant city engineer for Terre Haute.
The $1.77 million project, awarded to Milestone Contractors South LLC, also includes new pavement and upgraded accessible ramps and includes repaving Poplar Street from First Street to 25th Street as well as repaving Fort Harrison Avenue from U.S. 41 to 13th Street.
The city is paying for half of the project with the other half covered from a state Community Crossings grant.
"That is all together and was bid as one big project," Maurer said.
The city this summer will also repave Margaret Avenue from U.S. 40/Indiana 46 east to Stultz Street. That resurfacing project will cost about $115,000, said Brad Utz, director of inspection for the city's engineering department.
In a project undertaken by the city's Department of Redevelopment, Cruft Street from 13th Street to 14th Street will be redone. That $433,000 project is funded from the city's portion of federal funds through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, Utz said.
"That will be a continuation of what we have been doing to the south of there. It is a total reconstruction of everything. New curbs and sidewalks, new storm sewer, and then rebuild and pave the road," Utz said. That 90-day project is slated to start in early June.
While not road work, the city will also have yearly sidewalk replacement work. Dennis Trucking has been awarded a $392,000 contract for that work "which is all over the city," Utz said.
In Vigo County, utility relocation work continues along Springhill Drive from South Seventh Street to Erie Canal Road. Currently, Miller Piping is working to relocate gas lines for CenterPoint Energy, formerly Vectren.
"Road construction is tentatively scheduled to start in August," once utility relocations are complete, said Larry Robbins, Vigo County engineer/highway director. The project will create three new lanes, with a center turn lane.
The work is part of a nearly $4.5 million construction project awarded to White Construction Inc. It is the second phase of the road improvement project that spans about 1.2 miles that began last year.
Another project for Vigo County includes replacing Bridge No. 322 on 13th Street at Elizabeth Street over Lost Creek. That $1.5 million project, now underway, is to take two to three months to complete, Robbins said. It includes replacing the bridge superstructure.
"Thirteenth Street will be closed for two to three months as it all depends on the availability of supplies. I ask that everybody be patient as it may take some time to get some materials in," Robbins said.
The county will also be undertaking nearly $2 million in various road resurfacing projects throughout the county, Robbins said. One paving project — Rosehill Avenue from Erickson Street to Rosedale Road — was completed in April. Some other paving projects this year include Dugger Avenue from U.S. 150 to North Reiter Place; North Reiter Place from Dugger Avenue to Wright Avenue; and Wright Avenue from North Reiter Place to North Hollingsworth Place.
INDOT road projects
Work began on April 11 to replace medians spanning from Hulman Street to Maple Avenue in Terre Haute. This $1 million project was awarded to Feutz Contractors Inc.
The work will include removing deteriorated concrete center curbs, patching pavement as necessary and applying pavement markings, or concrete curb "repairs in areas of deterioration that cannot be removed completely." Workers will repaint, as well, said Debbie Calder, INDOT's Crawfordsville District spokeswoman.
The first phase was completed in April between Hulman and Cherry streets during the evening. Work from Cherry Street to Maple Avenue is being done in the daytime, with one lane to be closed in each direction where work is being done. This project is scheduled to be done by July 15.
Work began May 2 along Interstate 70 from near the Illinois state line east to Indiana 641. Travel lanes and shoulders are restricted for asphalt resurfacing work and a bridge deck overlay.
I-70 is restricted to one lane during construction work, which is primarily during the evenings, with unrestricted lanes Monday through Friday from noon to 6 p.m., weather permitting. Resurfacing operations started in the westbound lanes between the Wabash River Bridge and the Illinois state line.
This project was awarded to Rieth Riley Construction for more than $12 million and is expected to be completed by June 30, 2023. Under this same project, bridges and overpasses will receive maintenance work in 2023.
Also in Vigo County, Indiana 159 is now closed about 20 miles southeast of Terre Haute, near the intersection of East French Drive and about 1.6 miles north of Indiana 246. INDOT is replacing aging, small drainage structures under Indiana 159.
"It is expected to reopen in early June," Calder said. The official detour follows Indiana 246 to U.S. 41 to Indiana 641 to Indiana 46, she said.
That project was awarded to E&B Paving LLC for $2.2 million. The project also includes drainage work under Indiana 246, Indiana 157, Indiana 59 and U.S. 231. That work is expected to close Indiana 246 on June 6; to close Indiana 157 on July 11; close Indiana 59 on Aug. 15; and U.S. 231 will be restricted to one lane on Sept. 19.
"Work on each road will last for about one month, weather permitting, and will be closed accordingly," Calder said.
In Vigo and Vermillion counties, work continues on Hazel Bluff Road from South Grady Lane to County Road 200 East, closing part of Indiana 63. The Indiana 63/Hazel Bluff intersection has a crossover for all traffic into the southbound lanes between Terre Haute and Clinton.
This northbound lane closure is slated to last through July 1.
Milestone Contractors South LLC was awarded the $12.9 million contract. The project includes patching and resurfacing Indiana 63 from nearly 2 miles north of U.S. 41 to just south of Indiana 163. The southbound lanes were constructed last year.
In Parke County, work continues on a bridge deck replacement project on the U.S. 41 bridge over Roaring Creek, located just south of the junction with Indiana 47. The $2.5 million project is scheduled to last through Oct. 31.
In Clay County, a road patching project on I-70, in both directions, began in March, but is slated to end on May 26.
That $17 million project will deep patch the interstate in both directions from the 40 mile marker, 1 mile west of U.S. 231 (Exit 41) to the 58 mile marker, nearly 1 mile west of Indiana 39 (Exit 59). The Clay County portion of the I-70 patching is from approximately the 22.5 mile marker, about a half mile west of Indiana 59 (Exit 23) to the 29 mile marker.
Some work in Sullivan County includes a $2.1 million road resurfacing on Indiana 48 on about 7 miles of roadway from Indiana 63 to U.S. 41. That work is slated to start in early summer.
A bridge deck overlay is underway on Indiana 54, over Buck Creek, east of U.S. 41. The $352,000 project is slated to be completed near the end of September or early October.
A listing of some state road projects can be found at nextlevelroads.com.
Calder said INDOT reminds motorists to follow the posted work zone speed limit, use caution and consider worker safety when traveling through a construction zone.
Reporter Howard Greninger can be reached 812-231-4204 or howard.greninger@tribstar.com. Follow on Twitter@TribStarHoward.
