Heavy January and early February rains have slowed construction of bike lanes and a sidewalk on Bean Creek Road in Scotts Valley, pushing the completion date back.
“We’ve had approximately three weeks of rain,” traffic engineer Majid Yamin said. “It’s about a month behind schedule.”
When work began in December, it was meant to be finished in two months. However, rain and the addition of a sidewalk have slowed progress.
A number of cones shielding drivers from trenches and work areas stand in a row on the side of Bean Creek Road in front of Scotts Valley Middle School.
Bean Creek Road is a thoroughfare for students traveling to and from the middle school. Bike lanes on both sides of the road and a paved sidewalk on the school side will make the area safer once the work is complete.
The original plan included only the installation of bike lanes between Scotts Valley Drive and Blue Bonnet Lane. However, federal stimulus money from the Transportation Development Act infused the job with leftover cash from work on Whispering Pines Drive, allowing the city to add a sidewalk and a retaining wall.
Pavex Construction, a division of Granite Rock Construction, is building the bike lanes and sidewalk. The $316,000 cost is paid entirely by state bicycle transportation money and the leftover stimulus dollars.
The sidewalk will extend the length of the middle school’s property.
After the bike lane and sidewalk are completed, Granite Construction will begin work on the Bean Creek Road Rehabilitation Project. The $158,000 upgrade will repair failing pockets of asphalt and repave much of the road.
That work will also be paid for with federal stimulus money.
