Update To Route 54 Work Schedule Lessens Impact To Motorists

Selbyville -- In response to visitors, residents and business owners, who were concerned about traffic delays due to construction of the Route 54 Improvement Project, the Department of Transportation (DelDOT) announces that it has required the contractor to change their work schedule effective Friday, June 17, 2011.

The contractor, Mumford & Miller, will be permitted to utilize lane closures from 6 a.m. to 3 p.m., Monday through Thursdays only, with no lane closures permitted on Fridays during the summer season. Work may occur outside of these time restrictions, but will only be permitted on the shoulders as to not impede traffic. This change will allow traffic to move more freely through the construction work zone on Fridays as visitors head towards the beach resorts and local motorists move through the area.

As construction continues this fall and traffic volumes decrease, the contractor will return to working Monday through Friday.

Also, as the project moves into Phase II in mid-August, the contractor will be able to utilize lane shifts through the work zone. Lane shifts allow for traffic in both directions to be maintained at all times, although they are shifted slightly from the normal travel lanes. Lane shifts will be used for the majority of the remainder of the project.

DelDOT will continue to monitor traffic over the summer and make adjustments as needed to prevent traffic delays, as we work to finish the project as quickly as we can.

As a reminder the project consists of widening the existing roadway and providing a 14-foot wide center left-turn lane in order to improve the safety of the roadway, both for vehicular traffic as well as bicycles and pedestrians. Improvements will also include 6-foot wide bike lanes and 5-foot wide sidewalks. The Route 54 construction area extends from the intersection of Routes 20 and 54 east to the Mallard Lakes Development.

The project is expected to be completed in June 2012.