ATHABASCA — In some places Highway 55 is obviously being repaired and in others, it looks as bad as ever, raising questions from some as to what is going on.
In a message to the Athabasca Advocate July 14, a local resident expressed concerns after driving east on Highway 55 where some places have had the top removed and others haven’t.
“I asked the flag person and they said they weren’t sure, but thought that’s how it would be finished,” the caller said.
But Bre Leach, the project manager for Roads West Engineering, who is overseeing the construction said the cold milling, the removal of the top layer, is just Phase 1 of the project, which will see the entirety of the highway from downtown Athabasca to the Highway 63 junction 30 km east replaced.
“Areas may be assessed with different surface requirements based on engineered analysis as found in this contract,” Leach said in a July 14 email. “The current phase of work is pre-treatment work called cold milling.”
Because different sections of the road need different levels of repairs the highway will be done completely, but in stages.
"To be clear, yes, the entire roadway will be resurfaced,” said Leach. “Unfortunately, the public is drawn to asking the flag people who generally have no contractual information but are trying to be informative and courteous to the public.”
Otherwise, the project is moving along well.
“We’re seeing some great production just the last couple days so that’s a bonus. The weather has been awesome so time to keep it going,” she said.
