HIGHWAYS: ROUTE M'S RESURFACING WILL CAUSE SOME DELAYS

CHAFFEE -- The second phase of the Route M highway renovation project between Scott City and Chaffee began this week with the removal of the old asphalt surface and application of a new asphalt cover, the Missouri Highway and Transportation Department said Thursday.

Officials said one-way traffic will be in effect while the paving work is in progress, resulting in some delay to motorists. The highway department also warned motorists to expect more lengthy delays, possibly some brief stoppages and heavy traffic congestion when the paving contractor reaches the vicinity of the I-55-Route M (Main Street) interchange in Scott City early next week.

Bob Wilson, resident engineer for the department's Jackson area office, said the first phase of the project - renovation of the Route M bridge over Ramsey Creek - was completed earlier this month.

"The cold-milling to remove the old asphalt surface was completed Wednesday, and the contractor (Girardeau Contractors Inc. of Cape Girardeau) began putting down the new asphalt surface on Thursday morning," Wilson said. "The contractor is working eastward from Chaffee to Scott City. The paving work will be in progress Monday through Friday, and possibly on Saturday, from 7 a.m. to around 5:30 p.m. each day.

"Motorists will experience some delay in the vicinity of the paving work because of one-way traffic. Please watch for the flagmen directing traffic around the paving equipment."

Wilson said the project should take about two weeks to finish, weather permitting. The project includes 5.1 miles of paving. On the average, two to three miles of pavement can be poured each day, depending on weather conditions.

Wilson said the paving contractor should reach Scott City early next week, weather permitting.

"We expect the biggest problem for the contractor and motorists will be the two-block area of Route M - from the West Outer Road east to Crites Street, where the project will end. We've already discussed the paving work with the (Scott City) school superintendent. We will try to minimize the disruption to school operations (school bus and other vehicular traffic) by not being there at the start of or end of school each day," said Wilson.

"When the contractor reaches the area of West Outer Road and the on and off ramps of the interstate eastward to Crites Street, there will be delays and some stoppages while asphalt trucks are turning around to back up on the roadway to the paving machine. There will also be one-way traffic in effect while the work is going on during the day."

Wilson said flagmen with two-way radios will be stationed at the on and off ramps and on the southbound I-55 off ramp to make sure traffic does not back up onto the interstate.

"When the paving work reaches the vicinity of the I-55 interchange, we ask motorists to be patient and bear with us. It should take at the most one or two days to complete the work done in that area," he said.

"We are aware the interchange is the only direct way into and out of Scott City, and that it may not be possible to detour over another route, so we'll try to get the work done as quickly a possible."

On a another project, the highway department said the first phase of the Chester, Ill., bridge renovation will begin next month. On May 5, the Missouri Highway Commission awarded a $256,391 contract to Penzel Construction Co. of Jackson for improvement of the west approach to the bridge.

The project will include rehabilitation of the Horse Island Chute bridge near the west bank of the river, and resurfacing of the roadway between the smaller bridge and the Chester bridge span. A new guardrail will also be installed.

Bob Simpson, spokesman for the highway and transportation department's District 10 office in Sikeston, said a meeting with the contractor is scheduled next week. "We expect to set a start date in early June," said Simpson. "Once the work begins, there will be one-way traffic between the levee and the smaller bridge. We have allowed 60 working days to complete the project."

Simpson said the rest of the Chester bridge project, which includes the sandblasting and removal of the old paint and application of new paint, remains dead in the water because of Environmental Protection Agency rules.

The EPA told the highway department it must capture all of the red lead-based paint that is blasted loose from the bridge superstructure. "The problem is, there is no technology in existence right now to do the job at an economically feasible cost," Simpson said. "The only methods we could use are very expensive and we do not have the money."

Simpson said the state is looking at a method similar to that used in barber shops. Attached to the barber's hair clipper is a suction tube that sucks the hair from the cutter blades into a container.

"This new system would blast the paint loose from the steel superstructure and suck it into containers before it could fall into the river. The only problem is we have not been able to determine if it meets the EPA's criteria," Simpson explained. "Until we can find an economical answer to the problem, the bridge painting project remains on hold. We are inspecting the bridge on a regular basis to make sure no structural problems develop."

In a related development, the Illinois Department of Transportation has removed the old toll house on the Chester side of the bridge. Authorities said the toll booth was removed because it posed a hazard to traffic and was no longer needed.