SELMA – Drivers who use U.S. 70 at Ricks Road in Selma will encounter delays on Wednesday and Thursday.
As part of the widening of Ricks Road, an N.C. Department of Transportation contractor will mill away the old pavement in the intersection and along Ricks Road, starting Wednesday morning. The work will require temporary lane closures.
The contractor plans to add new pavement and permanent lane markings after the milling work is completed.
In addition, the contractor will install metal mast arms to replace the wires holding traffic signals at the intersection. Vertical poles that will hold the metal arms have been installed. On Thursday at 5 a.m., the contractor will close the intersection for about 20 minutes to erect the metal arms that will stretch over the roadway.
Law enforcement will control traffic until the metal arms are installed and the intersection can be reopened.
The signal upgrade cannot be done in the rain, so inclement weather may require the contractor to postpone the work to the same time on Friday morning.
The department awarded a $3.6 million contract last year to add a middle turn lane to the length of the two-lane road, and to construct curbs and gutters and improve the road’s drainage system. The project is on schedule to be completed next month.