BUCKFIELD – The Maine Department of Transportation will advertise next month for a $5.9 million contract to rebuild a 6.56-mile stretch of Route 117 in Buckfield and Turner.
The highway is classified as a major collector because it connects Route 4 in Turner to Route 26 in Paris, according to Richard Crawford, project manager for MDOT’s Western Regional Highway Program.
“The main reason for the project is to rehabilitate the condition of the road,” Crawford said. The work, which goes from the intersection of routes 117 and 140 in Buckfield to Route 4 in Turner, includes paving the 3-foot gravel shoulders on each side and updating the guardrails.
“We advertise the contract for three weeks, and then the contractor who grabbed it will set their own start schedule and decide on which end of the project to start,” he said.
Crawford said that last November he held a conference for the towns of Buckfield and Turner to discuss the project. At that time, the project cost was estimated at $4.45 million. Now, the state is working with a project budget of $5.9 million to cover construction, engineering and any right of way issues if extra property is needed.
Crawford mentioned that no houses would be taken, and that his sense is that there are no problems with property owners concerning the project.
“Any problems about the widening of the road have been voiced,” Crawford said. “There were few comments and concerns, but my sense is that people support the project.”
Crawford said as of now, he does not anticipate any major detours that will arise for travelers during the rehabilitation project. He did mention that a few minor ones might appear, but that they would be under the discretion of the general contractor who gets the job.
Crawford said the main goal for the project is to update a safer accessible route between Route 4 and Route 26 for drivers and bicyclists.
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