Roadwork resumes on Highway 11

Two road construction projects on State Highway 11 east of Blackwell have started back up after a series of weather-related delays. The Journal-Tribune spoke with Ted Zachary, resident engineer with the Oklahoma Department of Transportation, about how the projects are moving along. Here's what you need to know about each one.

PAVING PROJECT

Drivers frustrated by a bumpy roadway and reduced speeds won't have to wait much longer for the road to be finished. According to Zachary, paving contractors have been able to start working again due to the higher temperatures in recent weeks. Zachary said the paving should take “a couple of weeks to complete.”

For the project, a 1-inch overlay is being applied to the road surface, which was rejuvenated last year. Contractors used a “hot in-place recycle” to grind up the road surface, mix it with new asphalt, and lay it back down.

While the road's shoulders are not included in the paving project, Zachary said a coating of liquid asphalt will be applied to them in a process called “fog sealing,” which helps to seal off cracks.

Evans & Associates of Ponca City is the contractor.

BRIDGE PROJECT

Four bridges east of Blackwell will be repaired in the project, and work on two of them is now half completed.

According to Zachary, the two innermost bridges in the four-bridge span are being re-decked. One-half of each bridge has been re-decked so far, allowing the other half to remain open to traffic. Contractors have started working on the other side of each bridge, so traffic is now driving across the newly-rebuilt portion.

Work on the two bridges is expected to be complete within the next two-and-a-half months, Zachary said. Once complete, contractors will begin work on the two remaining bridges, one of which is the bridge over the Chikaskia River.

The project is expected to be complete in October. Gibson & Associates, a Texas-based firm, is the contractor on the project.