First Avenue construction back to frustrate drivers

Road construction is once again frustrating drivers on one of the busiest streets in Cedar Rapids.

An estimated 50,000 to 100,000 cars a day travel on various portions of First Avenue SE and NE in Cedar Rapids.  And all that traffic will run into some significant bottlenecks now that the weather has warmed up enough to lay asphalt.

Resurfacing work has started now on First Avenue between 21st and 27th streets.  There's also more work under way from 40th street to Collins Road/Highway 100.  And this is the third year of road work on First Avenue around the busy Lindale Mall area.

Some drivers said it's frustrating to see road crews return to the area around Lindale, because many people thought it was all done.

"We really thought we were done," said John Ferring, who works at one store surrounded by construction. "All last fall they had it torn up, first one side and then the other side.  It was so hard to get in here, and now they've torn it up all over again."

It may look like crews are re-doing work completed last fall.  But Craig Hanson, Cedar Rapids Public Works maintenance manager, said the plan all along was to come back this spring in the First Avenue area around Lindale to finish up.

It got too cool last fall to finish pouring a final layer of asphalt, and crews put down a temporary, and bumpy, top coat designed to last only until this spring.  Crews have returned to mill, or grind off, that temporary top coat, and then lay a smooth final coat.

The work around Lindale Mall should only last 10 days to two weeks.

Still, drivers like Sharon Bradshaw weren't happy to see traffic cones return to First Avenue East.  When asked how frustrated she felt, Bradshaw replied "on a scale of one to ten, I'm like a 12.  It's getting kind of ridiculous. I try not to come over here as much as possible."

The work now going on between 21st and 27th streets isn't quite as extensive as the original project near Lindale.  But it will go on a lot longer -- probably through the end of this construction season.

And before drivers breathe a sign of relief, there's another big First Avenue projects in the works after that.  That one will involve 13 blocks between 27th Street and 40th street.

Hanson said he doesn't know if that First Avenue project will start in 2013 or 2014.