Butler County Engineer
Greg Wilkens reports that major safety improvements to the Ohio
747 / Kyles Station Road intersection are slated to begin on
June 16. (Road
closures will not go into effect until July 7, 2008. Please see
more under Construction Phasing below.)
Plans call for widening
the roadway approaches for approximately one-half a mile in each
direction from the intersection, adding turn lanes and full paved
shoulders, adjusting the vertical alignment of the roadway surfaces
to correct sight distance issues, and upgrading the signals.
A construction contract
for the project was awarded to SK Construction of Middletown
which submitted a low bid of $2,692,412. Liberty Township RID
(Residential Incentive District) funds are being utilized to
pay for 100 percent of the project's cost.
All work is scheduled
for completion by late
October 2008, weather
permitting.
This project is another
in a series of improvements along the Ohio 747 corridor through
growing southeast Butler County. The road has been widened to
five lanes from the county line north to Princeton Road, and
the intersection at Millikin Road was recently upgraded. Once
this project is complete, many of the safety issues that once
afflicted the roadway will have been eliminated although traffic
volume and capacity issues may still need to be addressed for
the remaining two-lane portions of the road, according to Wilkens.
"With additional
development projected for Liberty Township, we will continue
to work with ODOT and the Township to plan any necessary upgrades,"
he said. "The upcoming improvement to the Kyles Station
intersection is certainly a very important step. We are pleased
to work with Liberty Township to facilitate a funding source
for this much needed safety improvement."
The upgrade to Kyles
Station at 747 will be a blessing to the residents and travelers
of Liberty Township, noted Liberty Township Administrator Dina
Minneci. "The northwest quadrant of the Township has seen
significant growth over the last few years, and the intersection
will soon be home to the relocated Liberty Township Firehouse
#1 and an upscale assisted living complex created by Aspen Trails,
LLC," she said. "With its current high usage volume
and the traffic that is expected with future developments, the
Butler County Engineer’s Office and Liberty Township are
working together to proactively improve site distance and driving
safety. The BCEO’s proven track record of creating effective
and protective roadway systems in a cost efficient manner means
that this intersection improvement will provide a higher quality
of life and travel for all of Liberty Township."
Work to
Occur in Three Phases
Construction of this
improvement will occur in three phases with each phase necessitating
closure of a certain part of the intersection. At no time will
all four legs of the intersection be closed simultaneously; however,
each phase will involve closing one or two legs of the intersection.
Click
here for a printable map which provides a visual explanation
of the closure phasing.
Construction
Phasing and Maintenance of Traffic
Throughout the course
of this project, local access will be maintained to residents
and businesses, although access will be restricted to certain
sides of the intersection depending upon one's location relative
to the phasing and work being performed. Detours will be posted
for all thru traffic.
The phasing and approximate
dates are as follows:
Note: Dates revised
June 12, 2008. Due to recent weather issues, utility companies
have had to pull crews off of construction jobs such as this
in order to repair and restore utilities damaged by severe storms
and tornadoes. Therefore, the utility companies have been unable
to complete the preliminary utility relocations necessary before
full road work can begin.
PHASE 1 -- Begins July
7, 2008. Ohio 747 north and south legs will be closed for approximately
seven weeks. Kyles Station Road east and west legs will remain
open. Residents of the Meadows of Aspen Trails subdivision will
not be able to access Ohio 747 via Glen Springs Drive. Access
into and out of the subdivision will be from Kyles Station Road
only via Oak Creek Trail.
PHASE 2 -- Update August
26, 2008: Phase
2 begins September 2, 2008. Kyles Station Road east leg will
close for about one month. Kyles Station Road west leg will remain
open and Ohio 747 north and south legs will be open. During this
phase, there will be no access to Kyles Station Road from Creekside
Meadows. Residents of this subdivision will be required to enter
and exit through the Estates of Falling Waters. Please see attached
map for specific streets.
PHASE 3 -- Begins approximately
late
September or early October 2008.
Kyles Station Road west leg will close for approximately one
month. During this phase, Kyles Station Road east leg will be
open and Ohio 747 north and south legs will be open.
Construction is expected
to be complete and all legs of the intersection open by late October
2008, weather permitting.
Detour during
PHASE 1: Northbound
Ohio 747 traffic will detour west on Millikin Road, north on
Liberty Fairfield Road, and northeast on Ohio 4 to Ohio 747.
Southbound traffic will reverse this route.
Detour during
PHASE 2: Eastbound
Kyles Station Road traffic will detour south on Ohio 747, east
on Millikin Road, north on Yankee Road, and west on Kyles Station
Road. Westbound traffic will reverse this route.
Detour during
PHASE 3:
Eastbound Kyles Station Road traffic will detour southwest on
Ohio 4, south on Liberty Fairfield Road, east on Millikin Road,
and north on Ohio 747 to Kyles Station. Westbound traffic will
reverse this route.
Motorists are encouraged
to check the BCEO web site as the best source for possible date
and status changes concerning this closure.
# # #
For more information
contact:
Chris
Petrocy, BCEO Public Information Supervisor
Greg Wilkens, P.E., P.S.,
Butler County Engineer
Phone 513.867.5744 • Fax 513.867.5849
