Fort Street -- ABOUT TIME

[Brad]

Published Wednesday
November 3, 2004

Just a tweak needed for Fort Street's four lanes

BY MICHAEL O'CONNOR
WORLD-HERALD STAFF WRITER


The City of Omaha was hoping that drivers would be cruising all four lanes of Fort Street by tonight.

Crews were finishing lane markers on the project Wednesday morning.

City officials said if all the lanes weren't open by Wednesday afternoon's rush hour, they should be open in time for the Thursday morning commute.

The Fort Street widening, which runs between 108th and 120th Streets, has aggravated drivers for more than two years.

Motorists and neighbors say the project has dragged on and has made their commutes frustrating and slow.

Norm Jackman, city public works director, has said there will be periodic lane closings until Thanksgiving as crews finish sidewalks.

Also, there are cracks in the new pavement that will have to be repaired in the spring.

The city has said it will be the responsibility of the contractor, WBE Co., to take care of the repairs.

WBE was given 340 working days to finish the widening project. The company ran out of working days more than two weeks ago and is being assessed late penalties.

The $4.7 million project had a May 2002 start date and involved widening Fort from two lanes to four.


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Thank God! Its about time. I remember weeks went by and nothing was being done.

[projectman]

Another WBE project. Has the city learned it's lesson?

[CountOfMC]

What baffles me to the ground is that it takes 2 years to widen a ONE MILE stretch of road.. it is absolutely beyond me. I don't know how they do it.