Two-week closure for Old Farms Road for bridge project
AVON – The state Department of Transportation has announced a twoweek road closure on Old Farms Road from Tillotson Road to Route 10, as the area is regraded and paved in anticipation of a new bridge over the Farmington River.
The closure will begin at 6 a.m. on Saturday and is expected to last until 6 a.m. Aug. 5.
DOT Project Manager Christopher Zukowski said the ongoing project will replace the old bridge over the river with a larger bridge.
The new bridge will also sit at a higher elevation, level with Route 10, and the route will be widened to allow for dedicated turn lanes.
Locally based firm ROTHA Contracting Company is leading the work, the DOT said, at a total cost of about $14.7 million.
The bridge, Zukowski said, is at a lower elevation than Route 10, and the resulting dips in the road make the sight lines less clear and the roadway more dangerous.
However, a portion of the road will need to be regraded to meet the new bridge, Zukowski said. That regrading and paving work is the cause for the upcoming two-week road closure, although Zukowski said traffic would have been significantly disturbed for about two months if the DOT had attempted a partial closure instead.
“There’s kind of a method to our madness here, but it’s really got the overall good of the public in mind as far as interfering with them as little as possible,” Zukowski said.
Once the road is paved, there will be a temporary transition down to the old bridge until the construction of the new bridge is complete, Zukowski said.
The entire ongoing project is estimated to take about two years and is expected to wrap up in October 2020.
Once the new bridge is in commission, Zukowski said the old bridge will be removed.
Emily Brindley can be reached at ebrindley@courant.com.
WEST HARTFORD – West Hartford drivers could soon find themselves facing down a $117 fine for blocking specific congested roadways under a new ordinance the town council passed Tuesday.
Town Engineer Duane Martin said the ordinance is referred to as “do not block the box.”
“It’s essentially a traffic control measure that’s done at busy intersections or driveways where traffic tends to block the intersection or driveway and cause an unsafe situation,” Martin said. These situations may lead motorists to “make a sudden or an unexpected maneuver which then leads to a crash.”
The ordinance specifies four intersections that drivers will not be allowed to block. The police department will be able to issue fines to any motorists who violate the blockage rule.
The four intersections are:
• New Park Avenue at the CTFastrak Station’s driveway, at 470 New Park Ave.
• Farmington Avenue at the Bank of America’s exiting driveway, at 4 North Main St.
• Raymond Road at police, fire departments’ driveway, at 103 Raymond Road
• Farmington Avenue (Route 4) at the intersection with Everett Avenue
This summer, these intersections will receive signage and pavement markings indicating that it is illegal to block them, the ordinance says. The signage and pavement markings will cost $1,000.
Town Manager Matt Hart said that town staff will also conduct a communications campaign to ensure that residents hear about the ordinance and potential fines ahead of time. Hart also said the police department would be notified to begin with a “warning procedure” as the fine system is first implemented.
The town’s corporation counsel, Patrick Alair, said that the fine is regulated under state law and the fine value is determined by the state. Although the fine is currently listed at $117, that value could be changed by the state in the future.
Emily Brindley can be reached at ebrindley@courant.com.