Times-Chronicle Staff
A long-time Oliver resident has expressed concern about traffic congestion caused by the Fairview Bridge repair project.
George Demelo Jr. contacted the Times-Chronicle to say that people are having a hard time accessing businesses in town due to the work on the bridge that has closed down one lane of traffic.
“I’m trying to get to ACE Hardware. It’s hurting local businesses. Why do they have to do that (construction) in the middle of the day?
It’s chaos.”
Demelo said the work should not have been scheduled during the peak time of the day, but rather later in the day or early evening. He noted the project is causing aggravation.
As of Wednesday afternoon, the Times-Chronicle hadn’t received any complaints about the project.
The bridge is undergoing compression sealing and other maintenance work.
Carol Sheridan, manager of Oliver Parks and Recreation, said the bridge project is an inconvenience for facilities staff doing work in local parks, but she hasn’t heard many complaints from customers.
“The way they have the signal light set up is keeping things pretty smooth; you just need to leave enough time.”
She noted her worry that Chef Daniel at Kinsmen Park might lose some business, but she’s confident he will “stick it out.”
Oliver Mayor Martin Johansen said the good news is the bridge deck work is ahead of schedule, which should bring an end to the lane closures sometime (latter part) next week. He noted the project is scheduled to be complete August 7 to 11 and will require lane closures again during demobilization.
Johansen said the contractor is starting work at 6 a.m. and is meeting the requirement for the bridge to be open during peak travel times between 7:30 to 9:30 a.m. and 3:30 to 5:30 p.m.
