Construction slated to begin on 385 north of Sidney

As you pass through Gurley Driving to Dalton on Highway 385 the road is smooth. Vehicles zip along the route.

Suddenly the road surface changes to a rough, worn and rutted highway.

At the end of June the state will begin repairing this particular stretch, from the county line through Dalton to Gurley.

Nebraska Department of Highways Doug Hovert said the state examines the condition of a road to determine if it should need repaving. And this means listening to ride quality complaints.

Weather also plays a big part in road deterioration. The heat in summer softens the road surface. As traffic plows along, imperfections can form. In winter water drains into the cracks, freezing and causing thermal contractions.

Both effects can be seen on Highway 385--the black lines running across the roadway and the ruts that challenge suspension parts. And both are considered a danger to motorists, particularly in winter or wet weather.

The State is not expecting any problems during the resurfacing project. The road will be narrowed to one lane with a pilot car during much of the work.

“A pilot car is in the interest of safety for the traveling public and the construction crew,” Hovert explained. “There will be some inconvenience but traffic lines should move quickly.”

Yet the project may extend into harvest, causing slow downs.

“It’s going to be during harvest not a good time,” acknowledged Dalton's Supervisor of Maintenance, Lloyd Searles. “They will be doing some milling one to two inch milling, then put an over lay-back on at one to two inches.”

Searles questions whether or not the milling would be deep enough to completely solve the issue.

“When you drive across the intersection you can feel the crevasses,” he said. “I think that the crevasses are more than two inches deep, I think it could effect the longevity of the road.”

The completion of construction on 385 is scheduled for early August.