LOVELL – Work began this week on improvements to almost five miles of Route 5 in Lovell, according to the Maine Department of Transportation.

“The project area begins between Lovell and Center Lovell, about two miles north of the southern junction of Routes 5 and 5A, and extends north through Center Lovell toward North Lovell for just under four and three-quarter miles,” explained Joe Darling, Maine DOT’s construction manager on the project.

The work includes drainage improvements where necessary, replacement of the existing cable guardrail with an updated guardrail, and paving, Darling said.

Darling says drivers should expect periods of alternating one-way traffic with delays of five to seven minutes at times. “It would be a good idea for folks to give themselves an extra five or 10 minutes to allow for possible delays,” he notes. “We’ll do our best to keep the delays to a minimum, but there will be times when we have no choice but to restrict traffic because of the nature of the work.”

The contract for the project, awarded to F.R. Carroll Inc. of Limerick, on a bid of more than $1.3 million, calls for completion of the project by mid-November.