HIGHWAY 72 RESURFACING TO BEGIN

The Missouri Highway and Transportation Department will resurface 39 miles of Highway 72 between Jackson and Fredericktown to improve the skid-resistant quality of the asphalt pavement.

The work will begin Wednesday at Fredericktown and proceed southward toward Jackson, said Bob Simpson of the department's District 10 office at Sikeston.

The contractor, Ozark Asphalt of West Plains, should be in the Patton area early next week. The work should take about one and one-half weeks to complete.

"It's been at least 10-to-12 years since any major work was done on this highway," said Simpson. "We'll start by putting a coating of liquid asphalt over the existing asphalt pavement. Then a three-eighths-inch chip rock mat will be placed on top of the asphalt. After it has dried and cured, there will be a roughened road surface that will provide better skid resistance for tires in wet weather."

The work will be done in nine-mile segments. Where work is in progress, traffic will be reduced to one lane. A 35-mph speed limit will be enforced.

Simpson said loose rock and liquid asphalt will be a problem. He said motorists can avoid delays by taking Interstate 55 north to the Highway 32 interchange near Ste. Genevieve. Turn left on Highway 32 and go west to Farmington.

"It's about 10 miles longer, but you'll make a lot better time," said Simpson.

Highway 72 between Jackson and Fredericktown is scheduled for upgrading to four lanes under the department's 15-year construction program.