Guilford-area drivers face Route 15 repairs

GUILFORD – With the exception of a short stretch of new pavement, motorists traveling Route 15 between Guilford and Dover-Foxcroft will have to contend for another year with the poor condition of the road.

Because of the late construction start this summer, only a small portion of the approximately 4 miles of reconstruction has been completed.

The section that was reconstructed is near the Covered Bridge Restaurant about halfway between the project’s start and end point.

The owners voluntarily closed the restaurant last year because of the project, so state officials did not want to disrupt the business for another year, according to Todd Pelletier, project manager of the Department of Transportation’s Urban Arterial Highway Program.

Pelletier said the project is taking a little longer than planned mainly because of the intricacies of the right-of-way process, the permitting, environmental work and grade changes.

“It’s a pretty complicated project,” he said Monday.

Two bridges will be replaced along the stretch of highway, one of which has been replaced with a temporary bridge. Work to replace the temporary bridge over Salmon Stream will begin early in the spring, Pelletier said. The other bridge at Chase Stream will be constructed later.

The DOT will strive to fill in the ruts on the remainder of the highway over the winter for smoother traveling, Pelletier said.

He also said that guardrails would be installed across from the restaurant along the Piscataquis River by Dec. 1. Another open section along the river by Salmon Stream will remain as is, he said.

While the construction contract runs through the spring of 2006, the contractor wants to be finished with the project by next fall, Pelletier said.