Route 1 Project - Weekly Update (8-4-15)
FALMOUTH ROUTE ONE INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECT
Construction Update #48 – August 4, 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 will start at approximately 8 p.m. and continue until about 6:00 a.m. on an as-needed basis.
GENERAL OVERVIEW:
Two real milestones were achieved in the past week. First, the new asphalt road surface is largely in place, as are the tie-ins to side streets. There’s still paving work to do, including the thresholds to business entrances. There’s also more work to do around many of the center-lane pedestrian and directional islands, and a few places that will need touch-ups to achieve positive drainage. But the Route One project zone is, at long last, a smooth ride top to bottom.
We can also see the sky! There is one remaining utility pole at the corner of Depot Road on the east side. It should be removed within the next day or two. We sincerely hope you agree that the viewscape along Route One is now far more pleasant. Also making things more pleasant: all major excavation work is complete; some small projects remain.
A word on the trees: we continue to water frequently and monitor. We’re pleased to report that most are showing strong signs of recovery. It’s likely that a few will still need to be removed, and we’ve been cautioned that it’s likely many will drop their leaves early this year. However, this is unlikely to indicate failure, and we expect that the majority will be fine in the spring. Remember, any trees that require replacement will be supplied and planted by the contractor at no additional cost to the town.
We know that at least one business owner is curious about the number of traffic signals on the mast arms. This is due to D.O.T. regulations, on the premise that there should be redundant signals to indicate direction for each possible traffic movement at an intersection. Thus, if one signal should experience a failure, others are there to keep traffic moving safely.
We’ve also heard a question about the angled positioning of the tactile warning strips at some of the pedestrian crossings. The reason for this positioning is likely to be more obvious once road marking occurs (likely next week); ultimately, the positioning is done to comply with Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) requirements.
WORK CURRENTLY UNDERWAY:
As of Tuesday, August 4, crews were working on – or have completed – the following:
Mainline paving on Route One
Sidewalk paving on the west side; two sections (from the Irving Station at Bucknam Road north; from Waldo’s south) await finish paving.
Sidewalk prep and paving work on the east side are underway.
Continued wiring of pedestrian and street lighting. This lighting is now active up to Depot Road; the remainder is currently projected to be online by the end of this week.
Cobbling of traffic/pedestrian islands; major islands south of Bucknam Road are cobbled, and crews are working on the one near the Foreside Tavern.
Continued finish grading and loaming along the sidewalks.
WORK YOU’RE LIKELY TO SEE THROUGH FRIDAY AFTERNOON:
Continued paving at business entrances. A second crew may be brought in on Friday to speed this process.
Continued sidewalk prep and paving on the east side.
Installation of remaining street and pedestrian light bases and poles.
Installation of remaining tactile warning strips at pedestrian crossings
Installation of a finish casting on the north side of Bucknam Road, adjacent to the entrance to the Maine Medical Center campus.
Layout for road striping (Thursday and Friday).
Touchups on mainline paving to achieve positive runoff and eliminate puddles.
Installation of cobbles at the entrances to biofilters. This work is expected to begin Thursday.
Curbing repairs in some driveways/business entrances.
WORK YOU’RE LIKELY TO SEE NEXT WEEK:
Many of the projects from this week will continue into next. The most notable work will likely be road “striping” or painting, which will begin early Monday morning (most of the striping work will occur in early-morning hours, giving the paint plenty of time to dry before the morning commute begins).
You’ll also see some specialty paving work around the pedestrian islands; this work will involve specially stamped (textured) asphalt. The stamped pavement will be the color of brick. Also, the pedestrian islands will be backfilled with a rich mix of compost and topsoil; planting in these islands will occur in the early autumn.
PHOTOGRAPHS:
We’re looking north from in front of F.O. Bailey. Crews are finish grading the east sidewalk, south to north.
Now, we’re looking north from in front of Allen, Sterling and Lothrop Garden Center. No overhead wires! No poles! We hope you agree that this is a huge improvement in the attractiveness of the Route One corridor.
Here we see a crew installing one of the last pedestrian light bases. This is adjacent to the Leavitt and Sons Deli; the base casting couldn’t be installed until a utility was removed. A handful of other light bases and pedestrian tactile warning strips are still to be installed.
Here’s a crew from Sargent Corp. working on landscaping on Depot Road, looking east. With finish-grade paving now in place, the crew is fine-tuning the loam grade in preparation for seeding.