Work continues on Highway 81 project

A highway construction season in our area typically shuts down in mid-October due to weather, but this season was anything but typical.  Wet weather delayed many projects around the state, pushing them into next year before they’ll be finished.

One project has continued to be worked on. It’s a several mile stretch of U.S. Highway 81 south of Arlington that was closed all summer due to water over the highway.

State DOT Project Engineer Jordan Nelson has an update on the project.  

Normally, a highway construction project might include a few hundred feet of guardrail that needs to be installed, but Nelson said this one includes much more than that. 

Nelson said due to safety concerns, they won’t re-open the highway until the guardrail is up.

Nelson said it will likely be 2020 before that stretch of Highway 81 will be re-opened.  

(Thanks, KWAT)