HANNIBAL – Drivers can expect to experience a smoother ride soon as crews are scheduled to begin next week with resurfacing operations on 8.4 miles of Route A in Marion County. Weather permitting, work is currently scheduled to begin the week of April 19 and will last approximately two weeks, taking place between Missouri Route 6 and Missouri Route 168 near Palmyra.
Signs and message boards will alert drivers approaching the work zone. “Drivers are urged to use caution as they may experience a rough ride in areas until the resurfacing project is complete. Traffic will be reduced to one lane where contractor crews are laying asphalt with flaggers, and a pilot vehicle used for traffic control, “explained Missouri Department of Transportation Area Engineer Brian Untiedt. “Drivers should wait for the pilot car before proceeding through the work zone or before entering the work zone from a side road. All work will be done during daytime hours with all lanes of traffic open at night,” he added.
The work will be completed by Emery Sapp & Sons, Inc. who submitted the low bid of $3,821,943.42 and was awarded the contract last fall. The contract also includes nine additional roadway improvement projects listed below located in Marion, Monroe, Ralls and Shelby counties:
- Marion County, Route W – Seal coat from U.S. Route 61 north junction to U.S. Route 61 south junction in Hannibal, the length of improvement being 3.3 miles.
- Ralls County, Route J – Seal coat from U.S. Route 36 to Missouri Route 154 at Perry, the length of improvement being 19 miles.
- Monroe/Ralls counties, Route W – Seal coat from U.S. Route 24 in Monroe City to Ralls County Route J, the length of improvement being four miles.
- Marion/Ralls counties, Route H – Resurface from U.S. Route 36 to Missouri Route 19 at Center, the length of the improvement being 13.5 miles.
- Marion County, Bus. U.S. 61 – Seal coat from just north of Route BB to just north of U.S. Route 24/61 in Palmyra, the total length of improvement being 2.8 miles.
- Marion/Shelby counties, Missouri Route 168 - Seal coat from Missouri Route 15 to Bus. U.S. 61 in Palmyra, the length of improvement being 31 miles.
- Marion County, Route C – Seal coat from Route Z west junction to Missouri Route 168 near Palmyra, with the length of improvement being 9.8 miles.
- Ralls County, Route DD – Resurface from U.S. Route 36 to end of state maintenance near Huntington Lane with the length of improvement being 3.7 miles.
- Marion/Ralls counties, Route Z – Seal coat from Route C in Marion County to U.S. Route 36 in Ralls County near Monroe City, the length of improvement being 6.8 miles.
Seal coating is used if the road is structurally sound and has a low traffic volume. It involves laying hot oil then covering with small rocks which are mashed into the road. Seal coating is typically used on roads carrying lower traffic volumes which make up more than half of the state of Missouri’s roadway network.
When a start date is established for the remaining projects, MoDOT will alert the public through signs, news releases and social media. All work for these projects will be completed by November 1, 2021.
Spring is here and highway work zones are beginning to pop up in Missouri. As you approach a work zone, please don’t drive distracted. Always buckle up and put your phone down for your safety and the safety of highway workers. All work zones are online at www.modot.org, and you can receive the latest news about road work in your area by signing up for e-updates.