Saturday, October 23, 1999
Reagan Hwy. work heads east on Monday
Construction will start a week early
BY TANYA ALBERT
The Cincinnati Enquirer
After morning rush hour Monday, eastbound Ronald Reagan Highway commuters can expect delays similar to those westbound commuters have been experiencing for the past week.
Eastbound Reagan Highway between Galbraith Road and Interstate 71 will be down to one lane after 9 a.m. Monday. Westbound traffic will have only one lane, too.
The Ohio Department of Transportation decided to start repairs on the eastbound lanes more than a week earlier than originally planned. The goal: Finish construction on the eastbound and westbound lanes in 21 days rather than 30 days.
Crews started repairing deteriorated sections of pavement and laying 13/4 inches of asphalt over the westbound lanes Monday. They planned to take 15 days to finish that, then start on the eastbound lanes for 15 days.
But traffic delays on the westbound lanes this week and a better chance for the 50-degree weather needed to put down the asphalt led to the new plan to work on both sides of the road at the same time.
“(Drivers) will still be inconvenienced,” said Kim Patton, spokeswoman for the Ohio Department of Transportation's District 8. “But they will be inconvenienced for less time.”
Westbound Reagan Highway traffic merging from I-71 saw five- to 10-minute delays this week, said Mary McConnell, a supervisor at the region's ARTIMIS traffic management center. She expects eastbound Reagan Highway could back up near Plainfield Road because there's already heavy rush-hour traffic there as people try to exit to get to jobs in Blue Ash.
These closures — and traffic backups — are a preview of what's to come in the spring, when each side of the highway will be down to one lane for $17.6 million in repairs.
Major work is scheduled to start in March, including building an 8-foot-wide shoulder, replacing the median with a concrete barrier wall, lengthening exit and entrance ramps, and repairing bridges.
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