MISSOULA, Mont. – The Montana Department of Transportation (MDT) and Pavement Maintenance Services Inc. will begin applying a seal and cover (chip seal) to eight Missoula streets the week of June 15, weather and unforeseen factors permitting.
Construction will take place on sections of South 3rd Street, South Reserve Street, Toole Avenue, Spruce Street, Madison Street, East Broadway Street, Beckwith Avenue, and Mullan Road. The chip seal work is expected to take a few days to complete, with temporary pavement markings being applied over the following weekend, June 19 to 21.
During this work, on-street parking will be temporarily disrupted. To avoid towing, all vehicles parked on the streets within work zones will need to be moved prior to construction.
Additionally, there will be brief disruptions to driveways and other access points during chip seal work.
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"When we chip seal a road, we apply a hot oil and rock chips to the roadway surface," said Dennis Hart, MDT Engineering Project Manager. "Vehicles cannot drive over a treated surface until it is dry because it will ruin the chip seal and damage the vehicle. Typically, a chip seal sets in about 30 minutes, so anticipate a disruption of that length if your access is within the project area."
MDT and Pavement Maintenance Services will work to ensure that businesses in the project area will have at least one access open during construction. However, this may not be possible in all situations, such as businesses with only one access.
During construction, motorists should expect intermittent road closures and single-lane traffic, flaggers or temporary signals directing traffic, reduced speed limits, and wide load restrictions on a case-by-case basis. Pedestrian traffic at crosswalks will also be disrupted at times and will need to detour. Visit 511mt.net for the most up-to-date information on road conditions and width restrictions.
Following application of temporary pavement markings, construction will pause until late July when crews are expected to return and apply the permanent pavement markings.
The purpose of this pavement preservation project is to extend the service life of these urban roadways. Over time they have become worn down and formed cracks.
Crews sealed existing cracks in early June to prevent them from expanding and requiring more expensive repairs in the future.
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