Metro Area Highway construction progress

[metro]

I thought I would start a thread to keep everyone updated on metro area construction progress. It appears work is almost done on adding a second turn lane on I-40 westbound turning onto I-44. Work is well underway also on adding additional turnlanes on I-40 westbound and eastbound from the Amarillo Junction down to about MacArthur. Im sure Dell's demands were getting these turn lanes completed before the new call center opens.

Does anyone know when they will finish or resume painting on the metal support beams under the overpasses at this same intersection?? I was so excited to see my hopes come to life and then it stopped almost immediately after it started.

[okcpulse]

metro, repainting will resume after road construction is complete. The overpasses have been painted where it crosses ground. To complete to job, various lanes will have to be closed. Construction and painting all at once could cause serious problems on the state's busiest stretch of highway, I-44, which handles 170,000 cars a day between NW 39th and Airport Road.

[Sooner&RiceGrad]

Construction at 122nd and Council is as annoying as ever...

Moore is fixing to reconstruct the Shields & I 35 intersection. A new cloverleaf is planned.

[metro]

Thanks for the update SoonerRiceGrad, that well be good for moore. What are they doing at NW 122nd and Council?

OKCPulse do you have an estimated timeline when the repainting will resume? And do you know what color it will finally be? I'm assuming the white and gray are just a primer?

[okcpulse]

Painting should resume this summer once construction is complete. Not sure of the exact month. I will e-mail ODOT about the final color of the interchange.

[Patrick]

The final color should be dark brown, slightly darker than it was before. The white you see now is simply primer.

[metro]

I figured the white and grey were just primer, hence my statement

I'm assuming the white and gray are just a primer?

. Thanks for finding out the final color, I'm sad to hear all they could come up with is dark brown, similar to the "rust" that is already there. I was hoping for maybe a forest green or a deep red, to give us a more modern eco-friendly look. Too bad they are not painting all the rusted out ones along I-44

[okcpulse]

Too bad they are not painting all the rusted out ones along I-44

ODOT awarded contracts for bridge painting back in February for the overpasses along I-44 between 39th and I-40. Not sure when painting will begin. Should be July, I'm guessing.

[Sooner&RiceGrad]

They are also repainting the striped in all of the avenues in Moore. The construction people working on this are VERY rude however. I have not been down there for this reason.

It's like I'll be waiting at a stop light, and from nowhere comes a bunch of machinery and it is in my way for like 10 minutes, as if I have NO life whatsoever!

[metro]

with the painting done and the old All Sports Stadium torn down, this stretch of I-44 is really going to clean up

[Patrick]

metro, I'm not 100% sure on the final color of the bridges, that's just what I had heard. I'll check with ODOT.

Also, I think the biggest eyesore on I-44 right now is the entire State Fair Complex. Tearing down All Sports Stadium will be a good start, but I'm anticipating more improvements to be made to State Fair Park in the future.

Tulsa actually has a very attractive Fair Park wchich they've recently renovated. Their new barns are first class, like the rest of Tulsa. I hope we follow their lead.

[metro]

Patrick, I never heard back from you but I think you are right, It appears they put a glossy brown over the primered areas, doesnt luck much different. I wish they would of gone with something more dramatic like crimson or hunter green. Anyhow construction is really underway on alot of the highways around town. Does anyone know what exactly they are doing to the 39th street I-44 southbound on-ramp? they completely dug it out

[mranderson]

Patrick, I never heard back from you but I think you are right, It appears they put a glossy brown over the primered areas, doesnt luck much different. I wish they would of gone with something more dramatic like crimson or hunter green. Anyhow construction is really underway on alot of the highways around town. Does anyone know what exactly they are doing to the 39th street I-44 southbound on-ramp? they completely dug it out

I think they are reconfiguring the on/off ramp to NW 36. They need to reconfigure the ramp system on I-40 to I-44. It clogs during rush hour, and will be worse when Dell opens, since it clogs the SW 15 exit. Other major cities have stacked interchanges. We should also. It would be easier.

[metro]

Thanks mranderson, but does anyone know the exact details? Patrick can you find out? This is all I could find online:

I–44 — Oklahoma Co. — Safety improvement project on I-44 at N.W. 36th St. and 39th St (SH-66) in Oklahoma City. CP Integrated Services, Inc. $1 million. Traffic impact on 39th St.

[MadMonk]

Anyone know what the plan is for the NW Expressway median contruction? I like the new wider turn lanes that help alleviate the apprehension when a larger vehicle blocks your view when they turn from the opposite direction. Will they be re-doing all the median turn lanes eventually?

[JOHNINSOKC]

Does anyone know if there is a long term plan to reconstruct I-44 from Airport Road to N.W. 39th?? With all the emphasis on the Crosstown the past few years, it seems like the state has forgotten about the most heavily traveled highway in the city. Eventually, there's going to have to be an overhaul since traffic volumes keep growing on that stretch and it's starting to look like a real eyesore.