Summer is the peak of road construction season, and several projects are either well underway or will begin shortly.
A number of projects got updates Monday.
In Emporia, Lyon County Emergency Communications announced the closure of Highland between 14th and 16th through July, as well as the reopening of Highland from 12th to north of 13th — as KVOE News reported late last week.
Work has been underway since March to replace above-ground and underground utilities, as well as the pavement, between 12th and 16th. Twenty nose-in parking spots are also part of the project along the west side of Highland. The goal is to have the project completed by the time Emporia State students return for the fall semester in mid-August.
Elsewhere in the KVOE listening area, a short project begins Friday in Madison.
There will be a “hot in place” resurfacing effort Friday and Monday from the junction of Kansas Highways 58 and 249 to the Verdigris River bridge two miles east of the town.
Because of the highway’s width and the equipment’s size, no thru traffic will be allowed between 6:30 am and 8:15 pm either work day.
Hot-in-place means existing pavement is heated and mixed with a recycling agent before going back down on the existing surface.
Meanwhile, resurfacing on Kansas Highway 99 is now underway in Greenwood County.
A “scrub seal” project has started between US Highways 54 and 400, or a stretch of over 16 miles. Scrub seal is similar to chip seal, where an asphalt emulsion is combined with crushed rock to repave a road.
The project will likely go into early August, with flaggers and a pilot car directing one-lane traffic through the overall work zone. Delays of up to 15 minutes are expected. Circle C Paving and Construction of Goddard won the project with a $680,000 bid.
In Coffey County, resurfacing has started on Kansas Highway 31 between Waverly and Garnett, or a distance of 26 miles.
This work involves both a scrub seal and chip seal. Flaggers and a pilot car are being used to direct one-lane traffic, with delays of up to 15 minutes expected.
Vance Brothers of Kansas City, Missouri, is the lead contractor on this $1.6 million project. Work should be finished by late August.
