Wellington County is deferring a culvert replacement project in Mapleton until 2017 in order to avoid adding to the travel problems anticipated due to a busy construction season in 2016.
In planning construction projects for the 2016 season county officials realized there will be several projects requiring road closures in Mapleton this year, making travel difficult, noted county treasurer Ken DeHart in an April 19 report to the roads committee.
Road closures in the area will include:
– Wellington Road (WR) 10 for the completion of the Wyandot bridge rehabilitation;
– WR 8 in Drayton, from July to October, for the Main Street bridge rehabilitation;
– WR 11, from WR 7 to the 14th Line, in the summer for work at culvert 111020 and road work; and
– WR 86 at the Wallenstein bridge (one lane) for the bridge rehabilitation.
“At the request of the local municipality, we are proposing delaying the replacement of culvert 110900 until the 2017 construction season,” explained DeHart in this report.
DeHart said the change means $300,000 in Ontario Community Infrastructure Funding designated for culvert 110900 will be reallocated to the Main Street bridge project, as OCIF funding must be spent in the year it’s allocated.
To balance the books $300,000 currently budgeted for the Main Street bridge rehabilitation will be reallocated to WR11 culvert 110900.
In an email on May 2, Wellington County construction manager Mark Eby said it was determined the original two-month timeline to complete the Main Street bridge work was “extremely aggressive.
“We did set the contract up to allow contractors to bid a premium to complete the bridge work in two months and provide the county with the option if it was feasible,” said Eby.
“In the end it was determined that the premium to complete the bridge work was not feasible so the work will take longer than originally anticipated.”
The bridge and road work will be complete between July 4 and Oct. 7 under a full road closure. The contractor may start work the last two weeks of June but that timing has not been confirmed.
If it does proceed on that schedule, in June one lane of two-way traffic will be maintained through the day and two lanes will be open at night, Eby said.
Local access to businesses and homes will be maintained throughout construction.
A sidewalk on the bridge will still be maintained throughout construction.
The parking lot on the east side of the bridge will be maintained for use as much as possible (impacts may be a day or two for watermain installation and paving).
