The westbound lanes of College Station Road are open to traffic this morning, reopening last night after being closed for almost a month: the area impacted was on College Station south of the Highway 10 Loop in Athens, where damage to a water main forced County crews to assess the safety of the road. The all-clear came late Monday.
From the Athens-Clarke Co government website…
On Tuesday, June 28, 2022, a 16-inch water main under the westbound travel lanes of College Station Road near the intersection of College Station at Riverbend Road was damaged by a private contractor. The ACCGov Public Utilities Department, with assistance from other ACCGov departments, closed the roadway and worked to reduce the water flow and repair the break.
Due to concerns about roadway safety from underground voids created by the break, westbound traffic lanes were closed beyond the North Oconee Access Road for roadway assessment and repair. Findings from the final report from a geotechnical firm included 1″-12″ voids and soft soils below the asphalt within the intersection of College Station Road and Riverbend Road, along with minor voids along the westbound inner travel lane. These findings confirmed that full repair would be outside the scope of work for in-house crews. On-call contractor E.R. Snell was instructed to begin the emergency contract process.
On Tuesday, July 12, Athens-Clarke County Streets and Drainage crews began removing asphalt in compromised areas of College Station Road to expedite repair work by an emergency contractor. E.R. Snell began work on full repairs on Monday, July 18. While the original goal for completing work was August 12, the work was able to be completed in less time due to the contractor having available resources, less material needing to be removed than anticipated, and favorable weather conditions.
The Mayor and Commission approved the repair plans for the road and a cost not to exceed $460,000 for the reconstruction at their Special Called Session on Tuesday, July 19.
“We appreciate the public’s patience with the inconveniences encountered during the time that College Station Road has been closed,” says Transportation and Public Works Department Director Stephen Bailey. “Our primary goal during this time was to make the roadway safe again for travel. I’m proud of the ACCGov staff and contractors who worked very hard to evaluate, repair, and reopen this busy area in a timely fashion while addressing the required safety issues.”