ODOT plans $5.7M in work on four Mahoning bridges

AUSTINTOWN — The New Road bridge over state Route 11 will close April 7 — the first of three Route 11 bridges in Mahoning County to be closed this year for painting and resurfacing.

Each project — the other two will be on the bridges at Kirk Road in Austintown and Western Reserve Road in Canfield Township — will take a little more than three months.

When those projects are complete, work will then begin on the Mahoning Avenue bridge over state Route 11 in Austintown. That project, which also includes widening and the addition of turn lanes, a sidewalk and vandalism fence, will take about nine months.

The good news is that at least one lane will remain open in each direction while the Mahoning Avenue project takes place, said Paula Putnam, a spokeswoman for the Ohio Department of Transportation, Region 4 office in Akron.

Only temporary lane restrictions are likely on Route 11 during any of the projects.

ODOT awarded A.P. O’Horo Co. of Youngstown a contract of $5.7 million for the four projects, which are likely to be complete by August 2009.

Residents living near the New Road bridge said there are alternate routes to the places where they go the most, and those alternatives will only add about five minutes to their drive.