Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
Serving Gogebic, Iron and Ontonagon Counties
By TOM LAVENTURE
Bessemer — Various highway, bridge and street projects in Bessemer this summer are meant to make driving a lot less bumpy, officials said.
“The work is to improve the ride quality of the roadway,” said Phil Strong, an engineer with the Gogebic County Road Commission (GCRC).
The Michigan Department of Transportation and the GCRC plan to soon start milling an inch-and-a-half of asphalt road surface off the top of U.S. 2, Strong said. The 1.25 mile project will start from where the highway comes into Bessemer at Tamarack Avenue in the west, to where the highway widens again going out of town near South Marshalek Road in the east.
The work will start with inside lanes and then the outer lanes to allow traffic flow, he said. The regular Bessemer city speed limit of mostly 30 mph and 40 mph in the outskirts, should remain in affect with traffic control when necessary.
“Bessemer will essentially go from a four lane to a two lane road through town with necessary traffic control with signage and devices,” Strong said.
The new surface levels will still match existing driveways and manholes without having to adjust for them, he said. The work should be completed by the end of June. GCRC will update their website as construction projects become available.
The Michigan DOT is financing the project to give the road a smooth traveling surface to last until a $21.4 million construction project along U.S. 2 will start in 2021, Strong said. That project will involve the city of Bessemer putting in new water and sewer lines underneath U.S. 2 as the Michigan DOT is reconstructing the road into a three-lane highway corridor through the city.
The side street construction currently underway in Bessemer is a $7 million sewer and water project along with road restoration that was funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Other projects this summer include a bridge on U.S. 2 between Bessemer and Wakefield, Strong said. The asphalt overlay is deteriorating, and the Michigan DOT is planning to mill off the surface and replace the asphalt overlay this year.
“Construction schedules are variable,” Strong said. “Please check back to our website for project updates.”
