GRAY – Work is scheduled to begin Monday, Aug. 9, on improvements to nearly 3.5 miles of U.S. Route 202, according to the Maine Department of Transportation.

The project area begins 3.8 miles south of Gray, at the intersection of routes 202 and 115, extends north 3.4 miles and ends just beyond the Northbrook business facility entrance, said Joseph Darling, construction project manager.

MDOT will make paving, drainage and other improvements, Darling said. The work will include replacing the drainage pipes that cross the road in the hollow north of Howell’s Sport Shop, removing an additional 3 feet of material from each side of the roadway for the full length of the project and replacing it with gravel to serve as the base for a new paved shoulder. Crews also will pave to create a 32-foot-wide roadway with two 12-foot-wide travel lanes and 4-foot shoulders.

MDOT intends to do its best to get people through the work zone “as conveniently and safely as possible,” Darling said.

That will take help from motorists, he said. Drivers “need to give their undivided attention to their driving, to allow plenty of time for the obvious unavoidable delays the project will create, and to resist taking their aggression out on those of us working out here to make this a better and safer commute for everyone.”

The contract for the project, awarded to Pike Industries of Lewiston on a bid of just over $545,000, calls for completion of the work by Oct. 1.