The upside of COVID-19 lockdown? Some Lexington road projects are ahead of schedule
A combination of good weather and less traffic on Lexington streets due to coronavirus-related business and school shutdowns means street crews have been able to pave more roads.
“We are currently about two weeks ahead of schedule,” said Rob Allen, director of Lexington streets and roads.
Allen said it’s not just fewer vehicles on the road that makes paving easier. Warm, sunny days with little rain have also sped up the city’s paving schedule.
“We were able to start laying asphalt about two weeks earlier than last year,” Allen said.
Also, less traffic makes it much safer for road contractors, who frequently have to dodge in and out of traffic while working on busy city streets, Allen and others said.
Officials with the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet District 7, which includes Fayette and several Central Kentucky counties, said decreased traffic hasn’t necessarily resulted in projects being completed early. But they aren’t behind either.
Those projects, which include repaving portions of major highways such as Interstate 64 and Interstate 75, are on track.
Transportation engineers said the completion dates for state road projects were set prior to the coronavirus outbreak, according to Natasha Lacy, a spokeswoman for District 7. Those dates haven’t moved.
Charlie Martin is overseeing Lexington’s $590 million sewer system upgrade mandated by an Environmental Protection Agency consent decree. A 2-mile sewer line replacement project from Oliver Lewis Way bridge, through the University of Kentucky campus, to Avenue of Champions and Euclid Avenue is ahead of schedule.
But Martin, the city’s director of water quality, said that’s not due to decreased traffic. The work is moving faster than anticipated.
The entire $10.9 million project is expected to be completed in early 2022. The city has had to close various lanes or entire streets for crews to dig under some intersections or in lanes of traffic to put in the new sewer pipe.
“That being said, people staying home and UK being closed certainly has made the lane closures less painful,” Martin said.
That’s also true for another key sewer line replacement project on Manchester Street. That work started in November and resulted in the partial closure of the road that leads to the popular Pepper campus, near the intersection of Manchester and Forbes Road. The project is hopefully on track to be completed by Memorial Day, he said.
With bars and restaurants in that entertainment hub currently closed to in-person traffic, that project is likely causing fewer headaches for residents and business owners, Martin said.
Allen said the prices of diesel fuel and asphalt were also down, making it easier to manage costs. Less traffic has also translated to a drop in air pollution, he said.
Another upside of less traffic — it may help the city and state save money on repaving in the next few years when money will be tight. Lexington Mayor Linda Gorton said earlier this week the city is facing a $40 million shortfall for the budget year that begins July 1.
“Less traffic also means less wear and tear on the roads,” Allen said.
This story was originally published April 23, 2020 at 11:52 AM.
