Mileground project now expected to stretch into late 2023

Ben Conley, The Dominion Post, Morgantown, W.Va.
·1 min read

Mar. 18—MORGANTOWN — Construction on the Mileground widening project is now expected to stretch through the majority of 2023.

West Virginia Department of Transportation Spokesperson Jennifer Dooley confirmed Friday the work is currently on pace to be completed this fall or winter.

The exact timeline, she added, will be dependent on the weather.

The Mileground work was a topic of discussion during the most-recent meeting of the Morgantown Monongalia Metropolitan Planning Organization Policy Board, as members expressed concerns about whether the project was going to hit the April /May completion window previously shared by the state.

That targeted finish arose after the previous November 2022 end date came and went.

Policy Board member and Monongalia County Commission President Tom Bloom said the commission has scheduled a work session with representatives of West Virginia Division of Highways District 4 for April 19.

"I guarantee that will be the number-one issue, " Bloom said.

Work on the Mileground began in 2020 with utility relocation, after being initially hampered by significant delays tied to property acquisition.

The finished project will widen the Mileground from three to five lanes, including a center turn lane, between the 705 roundabout and Donna Avenue. Donna Avenue is the turn-in for Northpointe Plaza.

The widening is actually the third installment of an overall effort to improve the entire corridor. The W.Va. 705 roundabout was opened on one end of the Mileground in June 2013. Improvements to the intersection at the bottom of Easton Hill were completed in 2017.

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