ODOT Urges Motorists to Slow Down in Grove City Work Zone
I-71/SR 665 Construction Update

DELAWARE (Thursday, March 31, 2011) The Ohio Department of Transportation is urging motorists to look up, hang up and go slow for the cone zone when travelling through the construction work zone at Interstate 71 and State Route 665 in Grove City.

Since November, construction crews have been working on the $22 million project that will replace the current Diamond Interchange with a Single Point Urban Interchange similar to what’s at Sawmill Road and I-270. SR 665 will also be widened from North Meadows Drive to Gateway West Drive.

The project is not expected to be complete until Fall of 2012 which means motorists will be driving between orange barrels, cones and on temporary pavement for some time. There are also between 25 and 30 construction workers in the zone every week day, many of them  just a few feet from the motoring public.

In the next few weeks, the contractor expects even more activity with hundreds of heavy trucks entering and exiting the work zone from 7 o’clock in the morning until 6 o’clock at night. Add to that, there’s an average of 400 trucks and haulers making daily trips to the Solid Waste Authority of Central Ohio (SWACO) on SR 665 just west of the interchange. With all that traffic, much of it truck traffic,  ODOT is urging drivers to slow down, pay attention and avoid distractions if travelling in this area.

In work zones, travel lane widths can be reduced and there are some areas of the work zone on SR 665 where there is very little shoulder.

Statewide, there were more than 5,000 crashes in work zone last year. Twelve people were killed in Ohio and more than 1,900 people were injured in construction work zones.

Once the asphalt plants open in April, construction work zones become familiar sights in Central Ohio and all over the state. National studies show young drivers are more likely to be involved in work zone crashes than any other age group as teenagers are more likely to take risks, be distracted or be nervous while driving.

In this Grove City work zone, drivers are urged to slow down to ensure safe travel.

For up-to-date information on ODOT construction projects and traffic information 24 hours a day, visit www.BuckeyeTraffic.org.