GREENVILLE – Six secondary roads in Pitt County will temporarily close this summer for a project that involves recycling the old pavement into a material used to reconstruct the road.
The process, known as full-depth reclamation, involves large, slow-moving equipment that grinds up the top layer of the existing pavement. The recycled material is reformed into a base that is placed back down over the roadway. The process is a more cost-effective, environmentally friendly method for repairing a road and making it smoother for drivers.
A contractor for the N.C. Department of Transportation has recently completed widening the six roads by grading out 1 to 2 feet of shoulder on either side to improve safety. The contractor is ready to begin the full-depth reclamation work, starting with Roundtree Road on July 11.
It will take about a week to finish the recycling process on Roundtree Road while it's closed to thru-traffic. Then, the contractor will return in August and place the final layer of pavement under lane closures while crews with flags direct traffic to complete the resurfacing project. The wider shoulders also will be paved.
The following five additional roads will undergo the same process for full-depth reclamation over the coming weeks though August:
- Abbott Farm Road (portion of)
- Speight Seed Farm Road (all)
- Frog Level Road (portion of)
- Kinsaul-Willoughby Road (all)
Drivers should follow the detour signs that will be posted for each affected road. Drivers should anticipate a longer commuter, and slow down and be alert traveling through the work zone.
The resurfacing of these roads is expected to be completed by September.