Brief street closures to pave way for improved Bartlesville sidewalks along U.S. 75

Several streets in Bartlesville along south U.S. Highway 75 will face intermittent closures in the coming weeks due to the Oklahoma Department of Transportation's ongoing sidewalk installation project.

The project, stretching along roughly 2 miles, commenced earlier this month and involves installing sidewalks on both sides of Highway 75, spanning from Camelot Drive to Green Country Village.

Micah Siemers, the city's director of engineering, explained that the ODOT contractor would replace street and driveway approaches onto Highway 75 to ensure they comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

The project led to complications with lane accessibility, prompting the decision to close affected side roads during ongoing work in each area.

"They are using high early-strength concrete so the streets can be opened within 24 hours of pouring the concrete, so these closures shouldn't be for long periods of time," Siemers said. "And there are other points of access to the highway for all of the streets involved, so minimal disruption is expected."

Work is set to conclude on Barnett, Harvey, Wayside, and Lester this week, with operations on Morgan scheduled to begin Monday, resulting in its closure for a few days.

ODOT has committed to keeping city staff informed about the upcoming closures, with information to be relayed to the public through local media, the city's Facebook page and its e-newsletter. Notifications are expected to be released a week before each closure.

The contract allows for a 120-day sidewalk installation project, but ODOT aims for completion by the year's end.

This article originally appeared on Bartlesville Examiner-Enterprise: Brace for street closures as sidewalks come to U.S. 75 in Bartlesville