NDDOT Plans Hwy 1806 S Project for 2022

Jan. 2, 2022 - Highway 1806 south from Main St to Eighth Ave SE will undergo concrete pavement repair, lane reallocation and traffic signal replacement in 2022. This project was initiated a few years ago when it was apparent the traffic signals at Sixth Ave and Third St SE needed replacing.

Concrete pavement repair will extend the roadway life by replacing cracked, settled or heaved concrete panels within a predominately “fair to good” segment of roadway. Other improvements include minor repairs to the Heart River Bridge, curb ramp updates, lighting updates and striping changes.

The cost participation and maintenance agreement, which is required for the City to receive federal and state funds for projects addressing needs on arterial and collector roadways, was the subject of two recent City Commission meetings. The North Dakota Department of Transportation (NDDOT) plans to bid the project in January for 2022 construction.

The City’s share of the project is 10% of the total cost. The estimate for the local share presented in April was $146,000, but during the October meeting Commissioners learned the estimate had increased to $201,000. Cost will be better known after the bid opening early this year.

In March 2021, the City Commission discussed the project at length and submitted a decision document requesting the roadway remain four lanes, however NDDOT has operational control and its final decision was to reallocate the roadway to three lanes.

The NDDOT explained project costs tend to change during the planning process and they work to communicate that information as much as possible. They added that the NDDOT works closely with the cities on these projects and most of the time is in-line with the City’s decision document requests, but on occasion goes in a different direction. The NDDOT explained in a letter to the City, this “road diet” concept has multiple safety benefits including calming traffic by reducing speeding, moving left turning vehicles from the through traffic stream, and providing safety benefits to the non-motorized traffic.

The City’s share of the project cost will be covered through the sales tax fund. Stay tuned to cityofmandan.com/roadprojects for updates and additional information.