The stretch of highway between Ohio 72 and U.S. 40 generally sees 50,800 vehicles a day, with 36 percent of that being truck traffic, District Planning and Engineering Administrator Matt Parrill said.
The widening will add a third lane on the eastbound and westbound sides of I-70 east of Springfield, making it a six-lane highway. A cable median will also be installed between eastbound and westbound traffic for safety purposes.
Construction began in July 2010 and was projected to be completed by this fall or winter.
“The weather kind of caught us, some additional pavement repairs we weren’t expecting and it’s always a good idea to get the final asphalt and striping done in the spring,” Chevally said.
Chevally said several sections of pavement needed more work than anticipated.
Parrill said asphalt plants typically close in early November and don’t reopen until mid-April, so laying asphalt during that time isn’t possible.
“It’s not that they don’t want to work,” Parrill said.
Currently, the project stands at 82 percent complete.
The delays in construction have not added to the budget for the project. The original estimate of the project was $27.1 million, Parrill said.
Chevally said after the completion of the lane addition, no construction projects are scheduled on I-70 until the 2014 fiscal year.
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