LOUP COUNTY—Weather permitting, the Nebraska Department of Transportation (NDOT) plans to begin a pavement improvement project for a section of Nebraska Highway 96 (N-96) located in Loup and Garfield counties. Work was scheduled to begin June 15 on N-96, from Reference Post 0.00 and ending ending north of the Calamus River Bridge at mile marker 13.58, according to NDOT.
According to the NDOT project fact sheet, the purpose of the proposed project is to preserve the transportation asset, improve the reliability of the transportation system and perpetuate the mobility of the traveling public. The need for the project is based on the condition of the existing roadway and bridge.
The proposed improvements on this project consist of widening the roadway three feet left and right and resurfacing the resulting roadway with asphalt. Curb and flume with asphalt shoulders would be constructed where warranted. The bridge over the Calamus River would receive deck repairs prior to an asphalt overlay. Guardrails would be removed and replaced.
Wetland impacts are anticipated; no mitigation would be required. The Calamus Reservoir State Recreation and Wildlife Management Area is within the project vicinity. The project is anticipated to require minor right-of-way from the property as well as the removal of trees near the intersection of N-96 and Dam Rd.
Werner Construction, LLC, of Hastings, Nebraska, has the $6,603,850 contract. Work will include bridge repair, grading, culvert installation, milling, and asphalt paving. Traffic will be maintained with a pilot car, flaggers, and signal lights. Anticipated completion November 2020.
Motorists are reminded to drive cautiously in and near construction zones and to buckle up.
