A months-long pipe reinforcement project in downtown Mobile appeared to be entering its final stretch this week, according to the Mobile Area Water and Sewer System. MAWSS Public Affairs Manager Barbara Shaw said crews worked through the weekend relining a 62-year-old pipe beneath downtown streets, and if the schedule held, the job was expected to be finished by early this week.
The relining process involved installing a new interior lining inside the aging pipe to extend its service life without fully excavating the street above it. Shaw said that once the original pipe was back in service, crews would move to dismantle the temporary bypass line and access ramps that had been in place to keep water flowing to downtown customers during the work.
Meanwhile, Mobile County traffic crews turned their attention to another long-running headache for drivers: the roundabout under construction at the intersection of Three Notch Road, Dawes Lane and the Dawes Lane Extension. Paving of the roundabout was scheduled for the start of the week, with county officials saying the intersection should reopen to traffic by the third week of November after being closed for an extended construction period.
Elsewhere in Mobile County, work continued on Satchel Paige Drive between Government Street and Bolling Brothers Boulevard, which remained closed to through traffic as crews widened the road to four lanes. The project, tied to the broader McGowin Park Shopping Center development, was expected to take about three months to complete.
The Alabama Department of Transportation reported that its own projects in the region were continuing on schedule. On Interstate 10 between Halls Mill Creek and the west end of the George C. Wallace Tunnel, resurfacing and bridge work kept nighttime lane closures in place Sunday through Thursday, from 7 p.m. to 6 a.m., with the work expected to wrap up by the following summer. Along U.S. 90 between Halls Mill and Pine Hill Drive, nighttime lane closures were expected to end by December. The state welcome center at the Alabama-Mississippi line remained closed, with no reopening expected before spring 2016.
In Baldwin County, the connector linking Interstate 10 to the Baldwin Beach Express near County Road 68 was about 95 percent complete, with only occasional lane closures expected on County Road 83 as crews finished remaining work. Construction on the Little Lagoon Pass bridge remained roughly halfway finished, with a detour bridge in place keeping delays minimal for drivers passing through the area.
Officials encouraged Mobile and Baldwin county drivers to continue watching for posted detours as several major projects moved toward completion heading into the winter months.