Stage 1 of Highway B project scheduled for April 1 to May 31
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By LeAnn R. Ralph
MENOMONIE — The first stage of the county Highway B project from Highway 12/29 to just north of Badger Drive is scheduled for April to May 31, while the entire project is expected to be completed by November 1.
The Wisconsin Department of Transportation held an on-line meeting about the county Highway B project March 25.
Haas Sons is the prime contractor for the project, said Cameron Shiffer, a project manager with WisDOT’s Northwest Region.
Informational meetings are planned to be held monthly, he noted.
County Highway B between US Highway 12/state Highway 29 on the east side of Menomonie to the eastbound ramps of I-94 will include replacing 1.6 miles of the existing concrete pavement with new concrete pavement, new curb and gutter, storm sewer and electrical, along with making improvements to the intersections and traffic signal improvements, according to information provided by WisDOT.
The county Highway B project, under separate contracts, also will including constructing a state inspection pull-offsite south of I-94 between Walton Avenue and 3M Drive, and making improvements to the rail crossing north of I-94 just north of Badger Drive.
Highway B will remain open to through traffic south of I-94 during the construction, and the project will be completed in four stages, Shiffer said.
Stage 1, anticipated from April 1 to May 31, will include constructing temporary traffic crossovers, and widening and installing temporary traffic signals. Traffic will be allowed on existing lanes, but motorists will encounter lane closures, he said.
Adam Ericksen with JT Engineering will be the project manager on site, Shiffer said.
Railroad
Stage 2 of the project cannot start until the work on the Union Pacific Railroad crossing is finished, Shiffer said.
During Stage 2, there will be reconstruction of the northbound lanes on Highway B. Two lanes of traffic will be switched to the southbound side, and then later on the two lanes of traffic will be switched to the northbound side, he said.
The reconstruction will put back everything the way it is on Highway B with improvements and modifications, Shiffer said.
There will be several modifications to the traffic lanes, the intersections will be widened, there will be new storm sewer and new traffic signals, he said.
The railroad crossing will have new signal arms and other improvements, Shiffer said.
When work is being done on the railroad crossing there will be a detour so that traffic will not be able to go directly north from I-94 and will be detoured to get around the work on the railroad crossing, he said.
The detour for the railroad tracks is expected to be in place from May 1 to May 31, Shiffer said.
Other stages
Stage 2 is anticipated from June 1 to August 2.
During Stage 2, the northbound lanes on Highway B will be reconstructed, and using crossovers, traffic will be maintained on southbound Highway B, with one lane of traffic in each direction, according to information from WisDOT.
Stage 3 is anticipated from August 3 to October 2.
During Stage 3, the southbound lanes of Highway B will be reconstructed, and using crossovers, traffic will be maintained on northbound Highway b, with one lane of traffic in each direction.
Stage 4 is anticipated from October 3 to November 1.
During Stage 4, the temporary crossovers and pavements will be removed, and any finishing work will be completed.
Messages
Message boards will be put up on Highway 12/29, and there will be message boards on the I-94 ramps and on the north end of the project, Shiffer said.
The goal of the informational meetings, and the message boards, is to have as few surprises as possible, he said.
“When people have surprises, that’s when bad things start to happen,” Shiffer said.
For more information, you can contact Cameron Shiffer, P.E., WisDOT Northwest Region, at 715-495-2196 or by e-mail at cshiffer@correinc.com.
You can also contact Dustin Binder, Dunn County highway commissioner, at 715-556-2293 or by e-mail at dbinder@co.dunn.wi.gov.
