DECEMBER 22, 2011 ISSUE
Contract for Final Leg of U.S. 321 Widening Awarded to Asheville Company
Closures Allowed Mid-Day Tuesdays and Thursdays, Nights on Mondays, Wednesdays
A $66.4 million contract was awarded to Taylor & Murphy Construction Company Inc. of Asheville to widen about four miles of U.S. 321 through Blowing Rock. Work can begin as early as January 2, 2012, and be completed by October 1, 2015.
U.S. 321 will be widened from two to four lanes from Blackberry Road south of Blowing Rock to the Shoppes on the Parkway shopping center near U.S. 221. Improvements include additional through lanes, turning lanes and new lighting at selected locations, new retaining walls and increasing sight distances by straightening curves.
High Country Press previously reported that heavy construction in the project isn’t likely to begin until spring, according to N.C. Department of Transportation officials.
The project will be divided into two areas. Area I is the more commercial area north of the U.S. 321 Business intersection toward Boone. Area II is the more rural/residential area south of the U.S. 321 Business intersection toward Lenoir. The contractor will be allowed to work in both areas during the project but is required to open all lanes to traffic in Area I first.
During construction, the contractor will be allowed to close sections of U.S. 321 on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. for blasting. In addition, the contractor will be allowed to close either Monday or Wednesday nights from 7:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m. for blasting. Depending on the location of the closure, the following signed detours will be in place:
• Area I: U.S. 321 Business through Blowing Rock to U.S. 221.
• Area II: N.C. 18 to Wilkesboro to U.S. 421 North to Boone to U.S. 321 to Blowing Rock.
For real-time travel information at any time, call 511, visit www.ncdot.gov/travel or follow NCDOT on Twitter at www.ncdot.gov/travel/twitter. Another option is NCDOT Mobile, a phone-friendly version of the NCDOT website. To access it, type “m.ncdot.gov” into the browser of your smartphone. NCDOT Mobile is compatible with the iPhone, Android and some newer Blackberry phones.
For more information about this project, contact NCDOT Assistant Resident Engineer Doug Eller at 828-265-5088 or click to www.ncdot.gov/projects/BlowingRock321.
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