The first phase of the Hwy. 66 Improvement Project is expected to reach its completion by the end of this month.
This phase, the first of the three phase project, began back in 2009 and stretches from Nichols Street to Boyds Creek Hwy.
Approximately 98 percent of phase is now complete. Crews are currently paving the surface course of asphalt on driveways, placing the final pavement markings, installing permanent signs, and performing general cleanup for completion.
Phase 2 of the improvement project began in 2010 and is also well underway. It is currently 46 percent complete and involves Hwy. 66 from Douglas Dam Road to South I-40.
Crews have completed the majority of the excavation and fill placement on this phase.
According to TDOT Community Relations Officer Mark Nagi, the crews are currently making great progress on the utility relocations, storm drain installation, and retaining wall construction.
“They are also placing base stone for the new outside lanes in sections where the storm drain and utility work are complete,” Nagi said.
An example of this is southbound Hwy. 66 between the Kodak United Methodist Church and Swaggerty’s and northbound between East Mount Road and Snyder Road.
The work on Phase 2 is on schedule with a completion date of Nov. 30, 2012.
Phase 3 of the project, which stretches from Boyds Creek Hwy. to Douglas Dam Road, is scheduled to be advertised for construction bids in the first quarter of 2012.
“If all goes as planned, construction should begin by spring 2012,” Nagi said.

… read the rest of the story by Subscribing now.

... read the rest of the story by Subscribing now.