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Progress continues on Highway 26 road work projects

Photo

Photo by Dan Lassiter

Traffic in the southbound lane of HIghway 26 is diverted into a single lane near the new overpass for Harmony-Town Hall Road between Janesville and Milton.

JANESVILLE — What it is: Construction might seem never ending along Highway 26 between Janesville and Milton, but project officials say the finish line is in sight for some key features of the road expansion.

For anyone driving along Highway 26 the last two weeks, bridge construction is far enough along that it's starting to make visual sense out of the seeming mess of reconfigured crossroads in the project.

Bridge work: Deck work is well under way at the future bridges at Wright Road and Harmony-Town Hall Road. Project manager Lance Wagner said crews have a hard deadline of Oct. 1 to finish the Harmony-Town Hall Road Bridge.

If weather holds up, deck work there could wrap up sooner, allowing traffic to again link to the heavily-used secondary road as early as the start of the school year in September, Wagner indicated.

Pedestrian crossing and turn lanes: Meanwhile, work will roll out in the next two weeks on the pedestrian crossing south of John Paul road that will serve as a connector for bike paths from the north and south.

In the next two to three weeks, crews will focus on completing left turn lanes and concrete curbs and gutters in the median at Highway 26 and McCormick Drive, Wagner said. That's the last stage of work before crews will pull barriers that have for weeks blocked northbound traffic from turning left at that intersection.

Milton bypass and beyond: As the new face of Highway 26 continues to take shape near Janesville, grading and bridge work continues along the future four-lane bypass east of Milton. Roadwork there is on pace to start next year.

By 2015, Highway 26 will be four lanes and will have bypasses around Milton, Fort Atkinson, Jefferson and Watertown.

The aim of the project is to enhance safety by limiting access, boost traffic capacity and spur development along the Highway 26 corridor.