Get ready for gridlock this summer in Streetsboro, as motorists navigate multiple road projects at the same time.
Mayor Glenn Broska said in a Facebook post that Diagonal Road will close July 13 at State Route 303 in Streetsboro for 45 days. Although Diagonal Road also intersects with State Route 303 in Shalersville, that intersection will not be affected.
The project is necessary for safety reasons, Broska clarified in a separate Facebook post.
“We have had more than a couple fatalities at that intersection and many accidents that have resulted in serious injuries,” he said. He added that contractors “have to move a lot of dirt and create new lanes of traffic as well as turn lanes and getting rid of the Y at Diagonal.” He said traffic cannot be maintained while the work is being done.
The mayor stressed that State Route 303 will be closed “for the duration of the project, in addition to part of Diagonal Road.”
“It will be closed at the top of the hill eastbound and by the farm westbound,” Broska said. “Apparently, the entire portion of that area has to be removed to accommodate the improvements.”
The closure is the latest in a series of traffic projects in the city that are forcing motorists to find alternative routes. Reconstruction of the intersection of state Routes 14 and 43 started in late March, and left turns have been off limits for most motorists since. Seasons Road also closed in early April because of a culvert collapse. In late February, the Page Road bridge over the Ohio Turnpike also was closed. The bridge is being repaired by the turnpike commission.
What work is being done this year in Streetsboro?
In late March, Ohio Department of Transportation began the $5.2 million project at one of the most-traveled intersections in the City of Streetsboro.
It includes:
Broska said although the entire project isn’t scheduled to be completed until November, the concrete work on the square, which he previously described as the “most painful” part of the project, should be done in mid to late July. Resurfacing work is expected to start in early August, and will take place at night, concluding in about a month.
“That will not cause near the headaches that the square has caused,” he said.
Broska said the long lead time required for delivery of new traffic poles for Ranch Road and State Route 303 has caused completion to be expected to take until November.
Other projects winding down
Broska said the city tried, “to no avail,” to have the Diagonal Road project pushed back.
He said the “construction company” already pushed that project back to accommodate the work on the city square. However, there was an issue with the concrete, which pushed the square project back a couple of weeks. The projects are separate, with their own timelines.
“Pushing the Diagonal Road project further back would have triggered the possibility of delay penalties for ODOT and us,” the mayor said, adding that both “decided to not broach that possibility.”
But the mayor said there is “light at the end of the tunnel” because in addition to work wrapping up at the square soon, Page Road is scheduled to reopen Aug. 15. Seasons Road is scheduled to be completed Oct. 2. The Diagonal Road project is to be completed in early September.
“Remember once we get through this summer, we do not have any substantial projects scheduled in the foreseeable future,” the mayor said. “We have survived so far and will get through this and the results will be much better.”
Reaction to upcoming closure
Motorists were quick to agonize on social media how they would get around the area with both projects occurring at the same time.
Shalersville Township Trustee Frank Ruehr took to Facebook to discuss the project, saying the closure was “almost impossible to believe.”
Ruehr pointed out that the intersection is in Streetsboro, not Shalersville, where Diagonal also intersects with the state route. He told residents plotting alternative routes likely would add only a few minutes to their trips. Some residents described the Streetsboro intersection as “a mess” and a site of frequent crashes.
In his own Facebook post, Broska said he was “just the messenger.”
“We try to prepare you for what is occurring but can only react to what we are told,” he said. “All of the projects going on are being done by and administered by the state, the turnpike and the county. We have some input but when it comes right down to it, they hold the cards and we have to deal with what is dealt. That includes the timelines they set forth.”
Reporter Diane Smith can be reached at dsmith@recordpub.com.
This article originally appeared on Record-Courier: Streetsboro drivers to see new roadwork headache at Diagonal Road
Reporting by Diane Smith, Ravenna Record-Courier / Record-Courier
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By Diane Smith, Ravenna Record-Courier | USA TODAY Network
