By the end of the week, motorists may notice some road construction starting on Jones Road north of Oak Harbor where construction crews are repaving segments of the blacktop.
It is one of the 51 roads in the county that are going to be worked on during the next six weeks.
Construction on parts of Jones Road is scheduled to begin Aug. 12. Once finished with that road, crews will work their way south.
“We do it every year and we select road segments and evaluate conditions,” said Randy Brackett, construction engineer for Island County.
He said that the county finds out which segments of road needs work through resident complaints and staff drives through the county.
Identifying problem stretches of the road early and fixing them quickly is the most economical way to maintain Island County roads, Brackett said.
He said workers are trying to group projects together to minimize impacts on motorists.
In all, Krieg Construction, the Oak Harbor-based company contracted by the county for the $786,000 project, will be working on 61 segments covering 24 miles of road throughout the island.
Approximately 58 miles of road will be resurfaced in Island County this year.
Weather permitting, the Whidbey Island projects should be complete in approximately six weeks.
Brackett pointed out that folks heading to the base will be seeing an additional lane being installed on Goldie Road from Ault Field Road to the Charles Porter Gate. Construction on that project is expected to begin in the middle of September.
Motorists should see lane closures as construction crews work on segments of the road, Brackett said.
In addition to resurfacing, county workers are going to sealcoat 18 miles of roadway on the island.
Sealcoating consists of spraying an oil-based substance on the road and then spreading in rock chips. A polymer has been added to the oil the reduces fumes and “locks” the rocks in for a better road surface, according to Brackett.
Road work
Construction crews will be working on parts of the following roads in the next six weeks:
Jones Road, Busby Road, Goldie Road, Cashmere Place, Fairvue Place, Thornberry Drive, Airline Way, Gun Club Road, Capital Street,Greenwood Street, Napoleon Drive, Conifer Lane, Bonaparte Lane, Wellington Drive, El Pozo Street, El Prade Avenue, el Sol Place, La Cita Street, Monterey Avenue, Burroughs Avenue, Wildwood Drive, Walker Avenue, Carl Avenue, Diane Avenue, Donald Avenue, Paul Avenue, Stephen Street, Rickover Drive, Admirals Drive, Chadwick Court, Chambers Court, Dewey Drive, Farragut Drive Fletcher Place, Halsey Drive, Russell Drive, Stark Place, Perry Drive, Kinkaid Drive, Koenig Lane, Leahy Drive, Mitscher Drive, North Bluff Road, Honeymoon Bay Road, Adams Road, Mutiny Bay Road, Saratoga Road, Double Bluff Road, Humphrey road, Maxwelton Road, Basketball Court, Blakely Avenue, Fidalgo Avenue, George Drive, Hawaii Lane, Lopez Drive, West Orcas Drive, East Orcas Drive, Somerset Court, Songbird Way and Tide Street
You can reach News-Times reporter Nathan Whalen at nwhalen@whidbeynewstimes
.com or call 675-6611.
