Just ahead of its scheduled July 2 opening, SR 73 in Highland County has been reopened to traffic at Prospect Road.

SR 73 has been closed since early April when contractors for the Ohio Department of Transportation and the Highland County Engineer’s Office closed the route at its junction with Prospect Road as part of an intersection improvement project on Prospect Road.

The total project includes widening nearly five miles of East Prospect Road, between SR 73 and SR 124, replacing culverts, correcting horizontal and vertical curves, upgrading drainage along the county road, as well as improving a half-mile section of SR 73 at Prospect Road to increase sight distance at the routes’ intersection.

As this initial phase of construction on SR 73 has been completed, the route is now open to traffic. However, there will be single-lane restrictions for additional paving and finishing work, but traffic will be maintained with flaggers when crews are at work.

In addition, restrictions remain in place on Prospect Road, and Bennington Road remains closed at its junction with Prospect Road, where widening, culvert replacement and drainage work continue. Traffic on these routes will be detoured locally via Pigeon Roost Road, Pleasant Road and other local routes.

DGM, Inc. of Beaver, Ohio was awarded a contract for approximately $5.39 million to reconstruct Prospect Road, and while most major construction is anticipated to be completed this year, the entire project is scheduled for completion in the summer of 2019.

Submitted by Kathleen Fuller, public information officer, Ohio Department of Transportation – District 9.