North Berkeley to be completed in October
By Rochelle Moore
Published in News on September 15, 2016 9:57 AM
News-Argus/SETH COMBS
Luis Garbajal, surrounded by dust, mans a jackhammer while working on the widening of North Berkeley Boulevard on Tuesday.
Crews are in the final stages of the yearlong road widening of North Berkeley Boulevard with an expected completion in October.
The surface of the road, from Royall Avenue to New Hope Road, was milled several weeks ago in preparation for resurfacing that will take place in three to four weeks, said Nicole Meister, N.C. Department of Transportation spokesperson.
Workers have installed underground traffic signal loops, which assist with traffic signal timing, and are currently finishing curb and concrete work along the busy thoroughfare.
"The surface was milled off to help with the installation of traffic signal loops so they didn't have to go back and tear up the final surface," said Steve Abbott, DOT spokesperson. "The traffic loops get buried beneath the asphalt so it was decided to do that work now rather than pave the road and then go back and mill to put them in."
Curb and roadway concrete work started this week and is planned to continue several weeks before road paving starts.
"We anticipate it taking about three to four weeks to complete the repair work and two weeks for the paving," Meister said.
When paving starts, lane closures are planned, and the project is dependent on weather conditions, Abbott said.
"(The) target to complete the work is mid-to-late October," he said. "(There is) no set date for any of this, since it is so weather conditional."
The $3 million N.C. Department of Transportation project, designed to alleviate congestion along North Berkeley Boulevard, started in July 2015 and includes the addition of a southbound lane from Royall Avenue to New Hope Road. Sidewalks have been added as well as intersection improvements in an effort to improve traffic flow. The addition of one southbound lane turns North Berkeley Boulevard into a five-lane roadway.
The project was originally planned for completion in June but delayed due to complications from communication and fiber-optic lines in the area, said Jiles Harrell, DOT Division 4 engineer.
The communication lines pushed back work on the replacement of a culvert that runs under the road near Adamsville Baptist Church.
DOT contracted with the Raleigh-based Fred Smith Co. on the project, which included coordination with city officials on the addition of new sidewalks along the route.
The widening to a five-lane road is expected to improve traffic flow along one of the city's busiest thoroughfares, which is anticipated to increase to almost 30,000 vehicles per day within 20 years, according to DOT estimates. Traffic along the road was recorded at nearly 15,000 vehicles per day in 2008.