Road Projects on Deck: River Road, Nessen Road, County Road 633, Karlin Road, More
More than 18 miles of roadway are set to be resurfaced this year along River Road, Nessen Road, County Road 633, and Karlin Road after the Grand Traverse County Road Commission (GTCRC) board approved over $4.5 million in construction contracts last week for the projects. Several other road projects are also on deck this summer and fall, with road commissioners and staff looking at better ways to inform the public of upcoming construction and explain how projects are prioritized and funded, such as Parsons Road work taking place before Three Mile Road work.
Road commissioners approved a contract for just over $2.6 million with Team Elmer’s for a hot mix asphalt (HMA) overlay project on 6.13 miles on County Road 633 between Schell Road and Old Maple Trail and 3.56 miles of Karlin Road between West County Line Road and Schell Road. Shoulder, guardrail, and pavement marking work is also included in the project. Work is anticipated to start later this summer or early fall and be substantially complete by October 31. Another project planned this summer in the area, a crush-and-shape HMA on Harrand Road from M-37 to Hannah Road, was previously approved by road commissioners in May for just over $476,000 with Rieth-Riley Construction.
Road commissioners also approved a contract with Team Elmer’s for over $1.9 million for an HMA overlay project on 6.01 miles of River Road between Keystone Road and Garfield Road and 2.44 miles of Nessen Road between the Benzie County line and Karlin Road. The project will include guardrail removal/upgrades and pavement markings. Work is expected to start in late August or September and take approximately 5-6 weeks to complete.
In a memo to the board, GTCRC Managing Director Brad Kluczynski explained that overlay projects occur on roads “that have deteriorated significantly but have not yet failed.” An overlay costs approximately $13 per square yard and can last 15 years without maintenance, resulting in a “life per square yard” cost of 87 cents, Kluczynski said. That lifespan can be extended with upkeep like crack sealing and chip sealing. In comparison, a full crush-and-shape project costs $50 per square yard and lasts 20 years, for a life per square yard cost of $2.50.
“The principles of asset management focus on the best bang for the buck, or the lowest cost per year to maintain an asset,” Kluczynski wrote. “To increase the life of the entire network for the lowest cost, road agencies do not use the worst first methodology. Once a segment of road reaches a failed level, the cost to repair it increases only at the rate of inflation, as the type of work will be the same whenever repairs are made. Applying these overlays now before the segments fail will prevent them from falling into the failed category, which would triple the repair costs.”
That type of explanation – helping the public understand how road projects are prioritized and funded, especially when roads are chosen for work that appear to be in much better shape than others – is something GTCRC hopes to focus more on going forward. Kluczynski spoke with road commissioners about the need for more public engagement around major projects, including putting construction updates in township newsletters, issuing press releases, holding public forums, and directly reaching out to neighbors in areas where major projects are planned.
For instance, Kluczynski said staff are working now on connecting with residents around the South Airport Road and Silver Lake Road intersection, which is planned to be rebuilt this summer. While that project will ultimately improve traffic at the intersection – creating dual left turn lanes onto Silver Lake from South Airport and upgrading the signal – construction is also likely to have a significant impact on the corridor while it’s underway. Some nearby residents have already expressed concerns about neighborhood streets being used as cut-throughs for drivers trying to avoid the intersection during construction. GTCRC staff are working on possible ways to address that and to alert as many neighbors as possible to the project ahead of construction starting. Staff also said GTCRC typically puts out signs along the road two weeks in advance to alert drivers to the start of upcoming work.
In addition to asset management, funding also plays a major role in project prioritization. Kluczynski used the example of work underway now on Parsons Road between Three Mile Road and Avenue B, which is expected to wrap up at the end of this week. Some residents have questioned why Parsons Road was worked on first over Three Mile Road. Kluczynski explained that the two projects are being funded by different federal programs that each have their own criteria for project eligibility (Parsons Road is a Small Urban project, while Three Mile Road is a Category F project).
GTCRC applied for Category F funding for Three Mile Road multiple times before finally getting approved. Design work is now underway on rebuilding Three Mile Road between South Airport Road and Hammond Road, with construction planned for next year. “As the segment is rebuilt, the GTCRC will add to the left turn lane at Hammond Road, and as it passes Vanderlip it will transition into a reciprocal turn lane,” Kluczynski wrote. “The GTCRC will also add paved shoulders in accordance with the ‘complete streets’ board policy.”
More GTCRC projects are on deck in the coming months. According to a staff report, resurfacing work – led by Rieth-Riley Construction Co., Inc – is expected to start July 10 on Veterans Drive between South Airport Road and the city limits and on Cedar Run Road between Harris Road and North Long Lake Road. The schedule calls for work to be complete by August 11. A nearly five-mile HMA overlay project, including intermittent shoulder paving, is planned for Blackman Road between the south county line and Fenton Street in August/September.
Road commissioners last week also approved a contract for just over $64,000 with Hubbell, Roth & Clark, Inc. for engineering services to upgrade the traffic signals at the intersections of Hammond and Garfield roads and North Long Lake and Cedar Run roads. GTCRC County Highway Engineer/Manager of Engineering Wayne Schoonover said the two sites represent some of our “largest troublesome intersections,” with the signal equipment past its life expectancy. The intersections will be upgraded to a modernized box-span design and eventually be compliant with SCOOT, the real-time traffic management technology being implemented by GTCRC to optimize signal timing at intersections.
Photo credit: GTCRC