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Orange -- as in road barrels and safety cones -- will be the color of Orem this summer as the city tackles a number of road projects throughout town.
One large project will be the overlaying of 800 East from Center Street to just past University Parkway, said Steve Perkins , construction engineer with the City of Orem. Area residents and frequent travelers on the road are probably aware of the coming reconstruction because of this spring's water line replacement that was done in preparation for the overlay. Crews have also been replacing broken sidewalk.
Perkins said the 800 East project is scheduled for later this summer, probably at the end of July or the first part of August.
A street overlay will also be done on 400 West, south from 800 South. Re-striping of 400 West will be done north of 800 South.
"We need to get that one done before school starts," said Perkins, referring to the beginning of fall classes at nearby Utah Valley University and Lakeridge Junior High School. While no specific start time has yet been set, Perkins said he assumes the project will begin in July.
"Our goal for road reconstructions is to get them in before school," said Sam Kelly, engineering section manager with the city. "We don't want to impact traffic."
A third location in the city that will see some major road work is the Sage subdivision area north of Orem High School. Work has been in progress for about two weeks, Perkins said, and will continue for another two to three weeks as crews put down an overlay complete with wheelchair-accessible sidewalks and new gutters.
Slurry seal work began this week with many of the projects mapped out for north Orem.
"We hope in two to three weeks [that] the whole slurry seal work will be done," said Perkins.
A slurry seal is a thin coat of an asphalt oil emulsion, Kelly said. Mixed with a smaller aggregate that is used to seal up the asphalt the slurry seal creates a new black surface coating that is not thick, but is watertight and gives more wear to the surface.
Slurry seals are done in the summer during warmer weather and are ready for traffic two to three hours after they are done, Perkins said.
Summer road work in Orem will also include the installation of six new traffic signals, and the upgrading of a seventh traffic light, said Kelly.
New signals will be located on 800 East and 1000 South (near the University Mall); at 400 West and 800 South; at 400 West and 400 North; at 1200 West and 400 South; and at 800 South Main.
A sixth signal will be relocated from 900 West 800 North to 980 West 800 North to give better spacing for the 800 North corridor, they said. The upgraded signal light is at Geneva Road and University Parkway. |
