Changing lanes, US 2 road construction on schedule

IRONWOOD - As the second half of construction continues on U.S. 2, one-lane traffic will be diverted to the south lane beginning on Wednesday.

Beginning at Curry Street, all traffic on Cloverland Drive will be diverted to the south lane for a half mile to Cloverland Cinemas. From there, traffic will be diverted to the north lane until construction ends at Roosevelt Street.

Drivers may have noticed asphalt has been poured and curbs have been laid in the south lane along the half mile stretch from Curry Street to Cloverland Cinemas.

Beginning on Thursday, North East Asphalt will lay nearly a half mile, or 1,400 tons, of asphalt. While the crew pours asphalt, Arrow Construction installed curbs along the side of the road.

Still to come, Michigan Department of Transportation Inspector Cody Erickson said a half-inch top layer of asphalt will be poured along the half-mile stretch in the south lane. The asphalt mix must be approved by the DOT, he said.

So far, Hebert Construction owner Patrick Hebert said the company has completed all the underground work, laid the sub-base and is still on schedule.

The mile-long project involves widening each of the four lanes from 11 feet to 12 feet. It includes utility upgrades, sidewalks and construction of a center left-turn lane at the Lake Street signal.

Hebert said there have been no major setbacks to date.

If construction stays on schedule, Hebert said the $5.2 million construction project should be completed by mid-October.

He said the community is pleased with the progress being made and they are looking forward to having a new highway,

"Everyone's looking forward to a new road," he said. "Everyone's been pretty good."

The 2014 portion of the U.S. 2 project was from the recreational vehicle park next to the fairgrounds to Curry Street.