By RYAN O’CONNOR
roconnor@yourneighborhoodnews.com

BOW – Residents who use Grandview Road to access Route 3A should find an alternate passage next summer.

The State Department of Transportation will soon be reconstructing the I-93 overpass, said Bow Department of Public Works Director Chum Cleverly.

“I think it’s really necessary and now is probably the right time,” he  said. “We’ve been patching that bridge section for a couple of years and it’s gone down through the fabric membrane, which separates the asphalt from the cement. The road salt will eat the cement up pretty quickly.”

The Department of Transportation and Bow officials have agreed to close the road, rather than have one lane open at a time, which Department of
Transportation Bridge Design Chief Stephen Liakos said would have at least doubled the project’s timeline.

“Basically, depending on snow days, I want to close the bridge when school ends, so probably sometime in June,” said Liakos. “It’s going to be closed for about 10 weeks, but if we were going to do half at a time, with temporary signals, it would have taken at least 20 weeks.”

Detours will most likely be set up encouraging vehicles to either jump on I-89 or use Ridgewood and Knox roads to access Route 3A, said Cleverly.

Dunklee Road
Dunklee Road could be reopen by Thanksgiving.

“Dunklee road is coming along well,” said Cleverly. “They’re making progress every day.”

The brook that flows below Dunklee Road has been drained and construction workers are currently excavating footings for the new three-sided cement culvert, which will replace the galvanized pipe that was washed away during the May floods.

According to Cleverly, New Hampshire Fish and Game is requiring an open bottom culvert to allow easier passage for fish, turtles and other wildlife.
The contract mandates that vehicles be able to pass over the bridge by Nov. 29, although Cleverly said he expects the road will be open earlier.