Route 1 Project - Weekly Update (7-28-15)

FALMOUTH ROUTE ONE INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECT

Construction Update #47 – July 28, 2015

The following information reflects the latest available information regarding the Route One Infrastructure Project in Falmouth. Please note that forward-looking information is based upon projections and is subject to change due to weather and other variables.

WORK HOURS:

Work in the Route One Infrastructure Project zone this week will begin at approximately 6:00 a.m. and last until approximately 4:30 p.m. Night work, mostly involving mainline paving, will start at approximately 8 p.m. and continue until about 6:00 a.m.

GENERAL OVERVIEW:

The big news? Paving will begin tonight (Tuesday). Pike Industries will start mainline paving on Route One. During daylight hours, you’ll also see plenty of finish paving (and prep for same) on the sidewalks.

Utility poles on the west side of Route One – with a very few exceptions – are now removed. All CMP overhead lines are down and we’ve been waiting for Time Warner and Oxford Networks – via their subcontractor – to remove the fiber optic cables on the east side (these are the two lines remaining on the east side poles).

We now understand that Time Warner will finish its final cutovers and splicing tomorrow; lines should come down starting on Thursday and east side pole removal – starting at FO Bailey and moving north – should begin on Friday.

WORK CURRENTLY UNDERWAY:

As of Tuesday, July 28, crews were working on – or have completed – the following:

• All new traffic signals are now operational, and all old signals have been removed. Lights will continue to operate on timers for the next two weeks or so, after which the new sensing systems will be activated.
• Sidewalk areas on both the east and west sides are being prepped for finish paving. In some areas, notable on the east side, final prep must wait until utility poles can be removed.
• Part of the sidewalk prep includes installation of remaining “quazite” boxes. These are electrical junction boxes servicing street and road lighting.
• The first of three zones of pedestrian and street lighting – starting at the south end of the project zone and extending up to the Morong dealership, is now active. The senior electrician for Moulison North expects the second zone – which extends north to Depot Road – should be active tomorrow night.
• Moulison has been installing a handful of remaining pedestrian light bases. Sargent is continuing with landscaping work. Much of this activity, particularly on the west side, was contingent upon the removal of utility poles.
• Five of the traffic islands have now been cobbled, with several more to go. These will be backfilled with loam within the next several weeks. Actual planting in these islands probably won’t begin until early September, when temperatures begin to cool.

WORK YOU’RE LIKELY TO SEE THROUGH FRIDAY AFTERNOON:

• The major focus this week is mainline paving. This work will be done by Pike Industries and is
• scheduled to start tonight (July 28). This work will be done in stages; the first stage will be
• paving of the center lane. Due to the presence of the traffic islands, this will be the most
• technically challenging (and longest) part of the paving project. In addition to flaggers, the
• Falmouth Police Department will be on scene to oversee traffic safety. In all, some 3200 tons of
• hot-top asphalt – delivered at about 20 tons per load – will be used in this project.
• Sidewalk paving (and prep) will continue.
• Installation of cobbles in the center islands will continue.
• Moulison North will continue wiring street and pedestrian lighting.
• Two final utilities cutovers remain: one at Gorham Savings Bank, and one at the Leavitt and Sons
• Deli. Both of these businesses are fed from side-street systems. The Gorham Savings cutover is
• scheduled for early tomorrow evening; the Leavitt and Sons cutover is scheduled for early
• Thursday morning.
• We expect that by Friday, east side utility poles will start coming down.

WORK YOU’RE LIKELY TO SEE NEXT WEEK:

Paving is expected to continue into next week. Mainline paving should be largely completed this week;
tie-ins to driveways and into side streets will likely be the primary focus next week.

Wiring and activation of street and pedestrian lighting will continue.

As utility poles are removed on the east side, expect to see considerable amounts of prep for final
paving on east side sidewalks.

You may also expect to see crews engaging in stonework at the biofilters (see photos below).

PHOTOGRAPHS:

This is work in front of Olympia Sports and involves some finalization of electrical work. That’s a quazite box (a junction box) in the center of the frame; just above it is a newly-placed foundation for one of the handful of pedestrian lights that are yet to be installed. The odd-looking device in the background is a compactor; soils must be well-compacted in advance of finish paving of the sidewalk, in order to ensure a durable surface.

We’re looking north along the west side. This is a crew laying down finish-grade asphalt on the sidewalk.

You may recall last summer’s newsletter, when we introduced you to biofilters. Last year, we showed you the installation of the subsurface structures; here, they’re approaching completion. Water enters the biofilters through the curved curb cuts. After passing through a geotextile, it enters a series of engineered chambers in which bacteria break down pollutants such as oil, removing a lot of contaminants from stormwater runoff. Shortly after the mainline paving is complete, crews will put cobblestones in the space between the edge of the pavement and the entry to the biofilters. You’ll also note what appears to be a conventional storm drain; this will manage excess runoff and serve as primary drainage mechanism in winter months, when the biofilters entryways are likely to be blocked with ice.