Workers are stripping the old pavement and eventually will resurface about 2 miles of Jetton Road. (David Boraks/CorneliusNews.net)
Here it comes: Workers from Blythe Brothers Asphalt Co. of Charlotte this week began tearing up one side of Jetton Road near West Catawba Avenue as part of a $1.5 million project to rebuild the trouble road.
The NCDOT is rebuilding about 2 miles of the road, from West Catawba Avenue west to around John Connor Road. The work is expected to be completed before June 14, under terms of the contract with Blythe.
State officials have said the work could get “messy,” in several ways. First, it will require shifting traffic from one side of the road to the other, as crews strip the existing surface down about 12 to 15 inches. That will take some getting used to: Some drivers already have reported seeing cars in the wrong lanes.
One side (2 lanes) of the road is closed. (David Boraks/CorneliusNews.net)
One side (two lanes) of the road will be closed, and traffic from that side will be re-routed onto the inside lane of the other side. When work on one side is completed, that side will reopen and the other side will close.
Meanwhile, the process of stripping and grinding the old pavement could send clouds of dust through the area.
An advisory on the town website says:
Motorists are urged to slow down and use extreme caution when traveling through this active work zone (pay close attention to the message signs). There will be loose material in and around the construction site, so failure to drive slowly could result in chipped paint or cracked glass on vehicles. Because the contractor is reconstructing Jetton Road with the street’s existing material, there will be a lot of dust and debris in the work zone.
Jetton Road’s crumbling subsurface has left potholes and other damaged sections, which have become a headache for Peninsula-area residents, who have no other way in and out of the area.
NCDOT tests in early 2014 confirmed problems with the road’s subsurface. Officials decided patches were no longer enough and the road needed to be rebuilt from the ground up.
The town will take over Jetton Road from the NCDOT after the project, but the town budget won’t necessarily suffer for it. Town Manager Anthony Roberts has said the town will receive more state money to maintain the road after it takes it over. (April 10, 2014, “After tests confirm problems, DOT to repair Jetton Road”).
Four lanes – two in each direction – will merge into two lanes, with one in each direction, during the Jetton Road project. (David Boraks/CorneliusNews.net)
RELATED COVERAGE AND LINKS
“DOT warns Jetton Road reconstruction will be ‘messy’” – See details about the reconstruction project.
More information on the Town of Cornelius website, http://cornelius.org/DocumentCenter/View/1757
