By NICK GOSNELL
Hutch Post
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — The work on the Washington bicycle boulevard continues northward now that the refuge island has been put in on 17th Avenue, though the storm sewer work isn't quite done yet.
"The heaviest portion of the construction is essentially from 17th to 19th," said Director of Engineering Jeff Peterson. "We're getting things ready so they'll do an asphalt overlay from 17th to 19th over those bricks. All the work that's getting done to date is kind of getting ready for that."
Where brick streets are in poor condition, the cause is typically the condition of the base the bricks are laid upon. The bricks themselves do not warp or buckle, but rather the sand and gravel base underneath them reacts adversely to weather and traffic/load conditions.
"From 18th to 19th is probably some of the worst brick streets in the community, with the existing storm sewer," Peterson said. "We're paving over them to make it smoother for automobiles, bicycles and those types of things."
A traffic circle will be put in at 18th as another traffic calming measure.
Going north, there's some minor curb and gutter repairs farther north," Peterson said. "There's also doing a mastic overlay, essentially, it's like what's getting done at the Sports Arena right now, to make it more black and extend the longevity of the good portion of the street that's asphalt going north."
The majority of the project was funded through an 80% state match for the bicycle boulevard, though the storm sewer repair came out of the stormwater utility fund.