Article Body
Department of Transportation
Office of the Secretary
700 E. Broadway Ave
Pierre, SD 57501
Phone: 605/773-3265
FAX: 605/773-3921
For Immediate Release: Dec. 11, 2007
Contact: Emilie Miller, 773-5103
US18 reconstruction project downgraded
HOT SPRINGS, S.D.—The South Dakota Department of Transportation today announced a change in the scope of construction work scheduled for US18 from Maverick Junction approximately one mile to the west, toward Hot Springs.
The project was originally scheduled to be a full reconstruction project, turning the two-lane roadway with bridges into a four-lane roadway with new box culverts. The roadway will instead be resurfaced with asphalt and the existing bridges rehabilitated.
Officials attribute the change in scope of work, for this project and many others, to the combined effects of increased costs for construction and flat revenues.
The asphalt overlay and bridge rehabilitation work, which is anticipated in 2009, will extend the life of the road in its current state by another 10 to 20 years.
Although the highway will not be widened and reconstructed at this time, the Department is continuing its plan to acquire property now to preserve the corridor for the future highway.
The Department of Transportation is currently reviewing its five-year Statewide Transportation Improvement Plan (STIP) in an effort to prioritize planned projects to best balance need and the limited funding.
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