DEERFIELD — As one construction project finishes in the northbound lanes of Interstate 91, another will begin next year.
According to Judith Riley, spokeswoman for the Massachusetts Department of Transportation, said soon after the I-91 bridge replacement work is completed, a separate interstate resurfacing project is set to begin in either the spring or summer of 2017.
Riley said it will cost the state roughly $15 million and will cover more than 11 miles through Northampton, Hatfield, Whately and Deerfield on both sides of the highway from mile marker 26.97 to around marker 40.
Riley said that work will include “interstate maintenance with pavement preservation and safety improvements.”
Meanwhile, Peter Rizzuto, project superintendent and engineer with J.F White Contracting Inc. — the construction company replacing the old southbound and northbound I-91 bridges over the Deerfield River and Lower Road, near mile marker 40 — said his company has completed work and is waiting for the state to give its approval.
“We’re ready to pull our trailers and leave,” Rizzuto said about the timeline of the almost $40 million state project. “We’re just waiting for a punch list from the state. Then, it’s on to the next job.”
The two-bridge replacement project took about four years to complete and required the rerouting of both lanes in order to build the new bridges. Most recently, workers planted trees and shrubs along the interstate.