Roads in Clinton will be closed this week as utility work continues in preparation for a N.C. 24 widening that is getting closer, even as the overall project has now been pushed back.
N.C. Department of Transportation contractors will be closing Overland Road at the intersection of N.C. 24 on Tuesday, Jan. 12, and Wednesday, Jan. 13, from 8 p.m. until 6 a.m. each day. Contractors will also be closing Airport Road at the intersection of N.C. 24 on Thursday, Jan. 14, again from 8 p.m. until 6 a.m.
DOT crews continue to work on stormwater and utility placement. City officials talk with DOT about project updates, road closures and traffic flow planning to inform the public as much as possible. DOT is doing a lot of work at night to minimize impact, City manager Shawn Purvis noted.
“We have had to make multiple substantial repairs during this project. Our crews are working diligently to ensure businesses and residents retain utility services. Crews have completed installation of waterlines on the south side of N.C. 24 (Sunset Avenue) and have completed installation from the bypass to near the Bojangles traffic signal on the north side,” he reported just last week.
It will be more of the same this week.
“They are doing water-line tie-ins,” said Purvis, who noted that no other road closures are known as of this time.
DOT has pushed back the N.C. 24 improvement project’s estimated completion date to 2018.
Last year, Sampson County commissioners put their full support behind a nearly $3 billion state bond proposal that includes $34 million to extend N.C. 24 improvements east of Clinton. A taxpayer vote on that bond issue is anticipated for March.
Currently, the N.C. 24 project encompasses a four-lane roadway stretching for approximately 40 miles, from Cumberland County to I-40 near Warsaw. However just two-thirds of the project — four of six segments — was funded, with construction to be cut off halfway through Sampson. The last two segments are currently unfunded, with 2030 the target date for their completion.
The board was one of many that adopted a resolution supporting Gov. Pat McCrory’s Connect NC bond initiative and encouraged the General Assembly to allow North Carolina’s citizens to vote on the bond proposal “to ensure North Carolina’s future on the global stage.” The bond seeks to connect North Carolina cities and towns by building roads, upgrading technology and constructing education facilities.
The $2.85 billion bond issue would address infrastructure and transportation needs in the state, as well as connect towns across North Carolina. Investments are proposed for 64 counties across the state, including Sampson.
In this county, Connect NC proposes to extend road improvements on N.C. 24 from U.S. 421/701 (Faircloth Freeway) and Sunset Avenue to west of State Road 1920 (Moltonville Road). That project tallies $34.2 million alone.