DGM Inc.

Thursday, April 13, 2000

DGM Inc. crews are scheduled to begin work on a bench-cleaning project today, said Holly Snedecor-Gray, Ohio Department of Transportation District 9 public information officer.

Crews will remove rocks and other debris from hillside ledges and ditches in eight locations along U.S. 52 and two locations along Ohio 7.

The project area will extend from about 3 1/2 miles east of the Lawrence/Scioto county line to just south of the Lawrence/Gallia county line.

DGM crews will begin work at the eastern end of the project near the Gallia County line, Mrs. Snedecor-Gray said.

"We make sure to keep the benches and ditches cleaned out so that when additional material comes down on them, it doesn’t go in the roadway," Mrs. Snedecor-Gray said.

The bench-cleaning project is not expected to cause too many delays, but ODOT officials will stop traffic as needed for safety reasons, she added.

When lane restrictions do occur, Ohio 7 traffic will be maintained in one lane with the aid of flaggers. U.S. 52 westbound traffic will be maintained in one westbound lane. The eastbound lanes will not be impacted by this project.

Ohio 7 and U.S. 52 might be closed for short durations if crews have to blast large rocks into smaller pieces or push debris off ledges, Mrs. Snedecor-Gray said.

"We don’t expect to do a whole lot of that," she said. "This project is a lot different than the project we had last year on U.S. 52 at the Ashland, Ky., bridge. We will be cleaning up what has already come off the hillside. Last year, we were actually removing the hillside. When we do have to stop traffic, the closures should not be more than 10-15 minutes."

This routine maintenance of ODOT roadways is scheduled for completion Aug. 31, said John F. Hagen, ODOT District 9 deputy director.

This project will cost about $387,000.

Additional information on the bench cleaning or road closures caused by construction, accidents, flooding or other traffic-related events might be found on the ODOT’s Web site at www.dot.state.oh.us.