Fewer turnpike work zones set in 2017

Staff report

BEREA

To reduce inconvenience for motorists, the Ohio Turnpike will spend far less money on construction in 2017 than in 2016 and have fewer work zones, the toll road’s administration announced.

That reduction will be reflected in less construction in the Mahoning Valley next year, according to an Ohio Turnpike Commission projects list.

The toll road’s capital-improvements budget is $121.4 million for 2017, compared with the $145.5 million program for 2016, which was the largest such program in 15 years.

This year’s work required closing until October of the turnpike’s eastbound Lords- town entrance ramp to accommodate a five-mile, full-depth toll road pavement replacement.

The 2016 work also included temporary closings for repairs of bridges that carry state Route 46, Herbert and Raccoon roads in Canfield and Beard Road in Springfield Township over the turnpike.

The Route 46 closing required customers of some Canfield businesses to make detours and prompted some motorists to detour through residential streets with 25 mph speed limits.

A recently issued list of 2017 turnpike improvement projects shows none in Trumbull County, and some bridge improvements scheduled for Mahoning County.

Traffic will be maintained during the 2017 deck replacement on the bridges carrying the toll road over Garfield Road in Springfield Township, said Brian Newbacher, turnpike public information officer.

Six mainline bridges and one ramp bridge will undergo bearing and deck-joint replacements next year along a 10-mile stretch of the turnpike in Mahoning.

“We’ll have less congestion in work zones because we’ll have 25 percent fewer lane miles under construction,” in 2017, said Randy Cole, executive director of the 241-mile toll road that crosses Northern Ohio.

“We heard loud and clear from our customers last summer. They want fewer orange barrels, so we are carefully balancing customer preference with the pace of our program for improvements,” he added.