August 9, 2019 3:35 a.m.
The southbound Interstate 5 on- and off-ramps at the Harvard Avenue interchange in Roseburg will be closed for 2 weeks starting this Sunday night.
Dan Latham of the Oregon Department of Transportation said the south end of Bellows Street will be closed at the same time.
Latham said that prime contractor Knife River Materials will begin setting up detour signs and traffic control devices around 5:00 pm. on Sunday, 2 hours ahead of the closures. All northbound ramps will remain open as will the main entrance to Roseburg High School.
Latham said the southbound ramps and Bellows Street are scheduled to re-open by Sunday August 25th. The closures will allow Knife River to excavate and rebuild the ramps and Bellows Street.
During the closures, detours will be in place:
*Harvard Avenue motorists will take I-5 north to the Garden Valley exit then turn around to reach the southbound lanes of the freeway. Meanwhile, motorists traveling south on the freeway will continue to the Fairgrounds exit and turn around to reach the northbound off-ramp at the Harvard interchange.
*Bellows Street services a neighborhood of around 25 homes north of Roseburg High School. When the south end of Bellows is closed, residents of that neighborhood will detour through the high school parking lot to reach Harvard Avenue.
Latham said that some sidewalks will be closed during construction. Alternate routes will be identified and marked for pedestrians, including those with disabilities.
The $1.9 million project will install new traffic signals on both sides of the Harvard Interchange, realign the intersection of the southbound ramps and Bellows Street with Harvard Avenue, add turn lanes, and make several other safety and pedestrian improvements.
Latham said construction began in May and will continue until October.