Integrity of road changes County Road 3 construction zone detour plan

UPDATE JULY 13: The municipality has directed the contractor to excavate the soft material on both the north and south sides of the existing concrete roadway.

It states “a geotextile separation fabric and geogrid reinforcement will be installed over the native subgrade before placing new granular road base. This treatment will stabilize the roadway structure by preventing the underlying clay soils from migrating into the new granular material.
The existing concrete roadway remains structurally sound and will remain in place as part of the final road structure.”

Traffic impact
The temporary traffic signals will need to remain in place until later next week. The current total signal cycle is approximately five minutes.

Financial impact
The additional costs associated with this work will be covered through the project’s contingency allowance.

The unforeseen issue will likely extend the original project schedule by two weeks. Work will continue into the middle of September. The project was originally scheduled to be complete by Sept. 1.

JULY 9: The County is advising motorists to be aware of possible traffic delays on County Road 3 (aka Rednersville Road) due to unexpected issues the rehabilitation project contractor encountered Wednesday, July 8.

The municipality reports that ss part of the road rehabilitation project, the existing asphalt surface was removed, exposing the underlying granular road base. Once traffic was directed onto the temporary gravel surface, crews observed rapid deterioration caused by moisture within the road structure. This resulted in rutting and uneven driving conditions.

To protect the integrity of the road, and reduce the risk of damage to vehicles, traffic can no longer safely travel on the exposed granular surface. As a result, the construction zone has been reconfigured to a single alternating lane controlled by temporary traffic signals.

Crews have shifted traffic onto the underlying concrete road surface, which remains in place beneath the existing roadway. This temporary measure is to help maintain safe access while staff and the contractor assess the condition of the road base and determine the best long-term solution.

At this time, further investigation is underway. Depending on the results, additional work may be required to remove and replace sections of the existing road base, which could extend the construction schedule.

The County Road 3 road rehabilitation project begins where the previous phase of the ended (civic #1460) and continues to the west for approximately 1.1 km (civic #1668).

The project scope includes ditching improvements, culvert replacements, paved shoulders and full removal and replacement of the existing roadway asphalt surface. Construction was awarded to Earth-Crete Ontario Inc. by Council on Tuesday, April 21.