The westbound lanes of Fifth Avenue South between 31st Street and the bridge that carries the road over a drainage ditch have been closed for about a month for an improvement project.

Perhaps as early as today, those lanes will be opened and the eastbound lanes will be closed as the work progresses.

The switch was announced by the Fort Dodge city engineering staff.

Once the changeover is completed, there will be one lane of traffic moving in each direction in the eastbound lanes. There will be what City Engineer Tony Trotter has described in the past as “head-to-head traffic.”

-Messenger photo by Hans Madsen
Traffic moves west along Fifth Avenue South in what would normally be one of the east bound lanes due to ongoing construction. Work on the project will be moving to the south lanes and traffic, in both directions, diverted to the north lanes which have just been completed.

The traffic disruptions are resulting from work underway to extend the Fifth Avenue South Corridor of Commerce improvements.

The work includes:

• Grinding off the existing asphalt and putting down new asphalt;

• Repairing the pavement between 32nd Street and the bridge that carries Fifth Avenue South over a drainage ditch;

• Creating sidewalks on both sides of Fifth Avenue South;

• Building pedestrian crosswalks at the intersections;

• Putting up limestone pillars and other decorative elements at the corners;

• Putting up black metal fencing;

• Installing new street lights.

Castor Construction, of Fort Dodge, was hired by the City Council to do the work at a cost of $1,084,500.63.

The work is expected to be done in about a month.

Similar upgrades have already been completed on Fifth Avenue South between 21st and 31st streets.