Among the improvements are improving drainage and widening the road
By Samantha C. DePoy
Staff Writer

AVON – Travelers on Route 4 in Avon may have noticed traffic is moving at a snail’s pace lately since the Maine Department of Transportation has begun a major construction project on a 3.8-mile stretch.

The project, which was awarded to E.L Vining and Sons Inc., of Farmington, officially began last October. It stretches from the rest area in Avon west to the Avon airport. Among the improvements to be made are repaving, improving drainage and widening the road, which will have two, 11-foot travel lanes and a four-foot shoulder on each side, said project manager Heath Cowan, of DOT.

The $3.8 million project, which is 80 percent federal- and 20 percent state-funded, was driven by a need to bring the road up to federal standards and to prepare for an expected rise in traffic levels. Cowan said that each day, approximately 2,370 vehicles pass through the stretch, and that number is projected to jump to 3,310 by 2022. Five percent of the current traffic is comprised of heavy trucks, such as 18-wheelers and logging trucks.

“The overall condition of the roadway was pretty bad,” Cowan noted.

Because extensive minor construction – including slope, clearing and utility work – was done over the winter months, Cowan said the project should be wrapped up by the end of this fall.

“They did a lot of work over the winter,” he said, “and that really helped a lot to put this project ahead. Over the summer, we ask people to bear with us and be patient.”

Once construction is complete, the slopes on each side of the roadway will be loamed and seeded, Cowan added.

sdepoy@sunjournal.com