HADLEY — The $26.2 million project to widen Route 9 from the town center east to the intersection of North and South Maple streets remains on track to be completed by spring 2026.

The expected finish date for the work on the state highway is April 2026, Billie Li, district environmental engineer for the Massachusetts Department of Transportation, told the Conservation Commission at its July 9 meeting.

Baltazar Contractors Inc. of Ludlow began construction in spring 2022, with an anticipation that up to four construction seasons could be needed to get in place the three 11-foot vehicle lanes, one in each direction and a dedicated turn lane, on the 2.4-mile stretch of road. There is also an 8-foot-wide multi-use path being put on both sides of the state highway.

Li’s request for an extension of the order of conditions comes with no plan changes and a reissuing of the original order. That was granted by the commission without discussion.

“We will just need two more years of coverage under the same order of conditions,” Li said.

In conjunction with the project, Hadley is having a 10-inch water main installed and is upgrading century-old sewer lines.

Each week, Hadley’s town website outlines the weekday work, which causes periodic delays as detail officers are on scene to direct when there is one lane of alternating traffic.

This week, with the contractor on site daily from 7 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., the work includes permanent patching between the Lowe’s home improvement store at 282 Russell St. and the Home Depot home improvement store at 350 Russell St., and the continued widening of Route 9 at the intersection with North and South Maple streets.

Scott Merzbach can be reached at smerzbach@gazettenet.com.