 |
| Messenger photo by Rachel Scofield |
| Workers dig through the mud to install sewer lines along Diley Road. The road will be closed for most of April with additional closings to follow. The project to expand the two-lane country road into a five-lane highway is expected to be completed in late 2009. |
Despite rainy conditions the week before Easter that temporarily halted most of the construction, the Diley Road widening project remains slightly ahead of schedule.
"Basically they didn’t work at all last week, but they were back (by March 24)," said Pickerington Service Director Ed Drobina.
The schedule includes weather delays, said Pickerington interim City Manager Tim Hansley.
The $15 million project, which is 80 percent funded by a Federal Surface Transportation grant, is expected to be completed by late 2009.
The construction includes widening the 3.5 mile stretch of Diley Road between Busey Road and State Route 256 from two lanes to five. The section of Diley stretching through Violet Township south of Busey to U.S. Route 33 has already been widened.
Along the west side of the completed road will run a multi-use path. The east side side will feature a sidewalk. Traffic signals will be installed where Diley intersects Wright Road/Columbus Street and where Diley intersects Long Road.
The city will complete a corridor study in April to determine the best use for the land once the project is completed. Hansley said that some residential property will remain but much of the land will likely be rezoned for mixed uses such as offices and retail – more consistent with a highway than a country road.
The current and final construction stage was awarded to George J. Igel and Company, Inc. for $13.1 million.
The first stage moved the intersection of Diley Road and State Route 256 to beside the Drug Mart. Two more stages widened Diley just north of the bridge for a combined cost around $3 million.
As drivers travel along Diley Road, they will pass workers laying yellow pipes for Columbia Gas and others digging ditches for sewer pipes. Tall piles of blue pipe will soon be used for a water main, Drobina said.
The first road closing is scheduled for April 1-30, with the second road closing scheduled for Mary 5 through June 2.
On March 31, 2005, the city conducted a public meeting for property owners along Diley Road. The residents were asked if they wanted sound walls to separate their homes from the highway. Based on the response, some subdivisions will receive sound walls and others will not.
This past week, the city included information regarding the sound walls in the utility bills of residents in the affected neighborhoods.
For information on the Diley Road project including photographs of the future sound walls and updates on road closings, visit Pickerington’s special Web page at www.ci.pickerington.oh.us.
