Motorists around Turlock are beginning to experience some extra traffic along busy corridors that are in the process of receiving a facelift.
For the past couple of weeks, construction crews have been updating curbs and gutters along Geer Road and Hawkeye Avenue in preparation for road repaving, which will begin in coming weeks.
Hawkeye Avenue, which currently has it’s asphalt ground down, is being repaved between Golden State Boulevard and Olive Avenue.
“We are currently looking at paving Hawkeye somewhere around late May, early June,” said Director of Development Services Mike Pitcock at the May 12 Turlock City Council meeting. “So hopefully we can start seeing some activity and make that road a whole lot better than it is."
The total project will cost $1,512,041, with $719,497 coming from federal funds from RSTP program and $793,000 from the Gas Tax fund. The $1.5 million price tag includes a more than $1.2 million bid awarded to Teichert Construction, Inc.
At completion of the project, Hawkeye Avenue will have a similar rubberized surface as Fulkerth Road, which was repaved between Golden State Boulevard and Highway 99 in 2013.
The rubberized asphalt surface treatment is said to be longer-lasting than traditional pavement, provide a quieter ride, and cause less wear-and-tear on vehicles' tires.
Geer Road between Monte Vista Avenue and Taylor Road is also receiving a facelift, with repaving and sidewalk improvements currently ongoing.
In addition to repaving, the island along Geer Road, in front of the CSU Stanislaus Warrior Stadium, is being extended in front of Fulton Drive to prevent motorists from crossing across the high-traffic corridor.
Geer Road repaving is also being paid for in large part by federal RSTP dollars, which makes up $917,497 of the $1,243,773 total cost. The additional $328,000 is coming from Gas Tax dollars.
Teichert Construction, Inc. was also awarded the bid for the Geer Road project as the lowest responsible bidder.
The Geer Road rehabilitation project will also have feature the rubberized asphalt surface treatment.
Both projects are expected to continue into June and will often have lane closures associated with them, so motorists should prepare for additional traffic in these areas or take alternate routes.
Other projects around Turlock that are finishing up include the Drew Avenue improvements. Construction crews have been installing sewer improvements on Drew Avenue between Pedras and Tuolumne roads over the past few weeks and are now preparing repave the road.
