Of all things, a shortage of detour signs is holding up work on Akron’s central interchange, where Interstates 76, 77 and state Route 8 come together. Tens of thousands of motorists navigate this thicket of roadways every day, and it is just one of several major road projects in the area that will cause more lane and ramp closures. Still, the closure of three ramps at the central interchange promises to have the greatest impact.
What explains the absence of more than 100 signs? Officials at the Ohio Department of Transportation don’t have an answer, or at least one they are ready to share. They point out that the contractor, despite years of lead time, wasn’t ready for Tuesday night. Contractors, not the department, provide signs. There is no state warehouse of used signs that can be tapped.
The hope is, the glitch isn’t a sign of things to come. The next five years, the department plans to spend $500 million to $600 million across Summit County, a welcome jolt of economic activity. Still, that’s a lot of orange cones and barrels around which drivers must navigate. The less confusion, the better.
The work on the central interchange, which also involves the removal of three bridges just to the west, is expected to last until November. Because of lane closures and bridge removal, all in such close proximity, the department says it is necessary to close three ramps at the same time, affecting those traveling south on Route 8 and then west on I-76, those coming north on I-77 who want to head west on I-76 and those traveling east on I-76 who want to go south on I-77.
So, there still will be some access through the interchange. It promises to be a headache in most instances, say, heading to the airport.
Meanwhile, work on a separate project is proceeding on I-76 east of downtown. There, lane and ramp closures are expected through October as overpasses and their attached ramps are repaired. And in September, work on the Main/Broadway interchange is planned, an extensive overhaul estimated to end in the summer of 2020.
Part of the crunch is due to the Republican National Convention, the state sensibly waiting until delegates left town before causing major disruptions in the Akron area, whose hotels helped to absorb the overflow from Cleveland.
More broadly, the department cites the need for overhauls to roads and bridges at the end of their useful lives. Decades have passed since the advent of the interstate highway system, and a backlog has built up, part of decades of shortsighted planning and inadequate funding. That backlog is being eased across the state through bonds backed by Ohio Turnpike revenue.
Under Gov. John Kasich’s transportation plan, $6 billion in long-delayed projects are being taken off the shelf, for example the $85 million Main/Broadway interchange. The bonds, in turn, free other funds, leading to a temporary surge in construction activity. For several months this fall, projects will overlap in and around downtown. Drivers can look forward to when it ends, the road smoother and safer every day.