• 
• CLASS
• JOBS
• AUTO
• HOMES

Work on I-43 begins Monday

Photo

Expect delays on Interstate 43 in Walworth County starting Monday.

The state will begin work on 16 miles of the Interstate from the Rock County line to Highway 12 in Walworth County.

The project is expected to last from June 1 to mid-October, Department of Transportation officials said.

It includes asphalt shoulder and concrete pavement replacement, along with work on bridges to provide smoother driving surfaces and safer shoulders.

I-43 will stay open to traffic while single lanes are closed in three-mile intervals.

Gov. Jim Doyle approved the $8.5 million project as part of the state’s “Grow Wisconsin” initiative to invest in infrastructure and stimulate the economy.

Federal money will cover 80 percent of the project, and state transportation funds will pay the rest.

Larry Price, Walworth County public works superintendent, said the county is not directly involved with the project, but local government is responsible for maintaining the Interstate after the project is completed.

“We get funding from the state to maintain it,” Price said. “We do snowplowing, crack filling, shoulder repair, trash pickup, mowing.”

The Walworth County Public Works Department is also responsible for on-demand repairs.

“We respond to emergency situations when the pavement heaves in the high-heat (because) we have to keep the road open,” Price said. “It happens many times in the middle of the night in the hot nights of the summer.”

Given the state’s budget shortfall, some work that Walworth County is asked to do has changed, Price added.

Walworth County is limited to one mowing per season and one trash pickup, and filling cracks is over for 2009.

“It sure would look nicer to mow more, but they’d be better off spending more money on safety,” Price added.

“People may see more and taller grass, but in trade, we’re going to work on shoulder drop off or anything that could be a safety factor.”