US 53 Projects In Barron And Washburn Counties Resume

Construction on two multiyear pavement replacement projects on US 53 in Barron and Washburn counties is set to resume Monday, March 25.

The pavement on both segments of US 53 has reached the end of its service life. To address this, the Wisconsin Department of Transportation is planning the following:

• From 26th Avenue north of Rice Lake in Barron County to Pine Grove Road south of Sarona in Washburn County:
  • Remove the existing pavement and a portion of the existing base course on US 53.
  • Place a new base aggregate layer for drainage.
  • Replace the pavement on US 53.
  • Rebuild the intersection approaches.
  • Install cable barrier in the median between 26th and 27th avenues and a high-friction surface treatment on the pavement in the same area to reduce crossover and run-off-the-road crashes.
• From Wildcat Road in the town of Beaver Brook to County A in the town of Spooner in Washburn County:
  • Remove the existing pavement and a portion of the existing base course on north-and southbound US 53 and the ramps at the US 63 and WIS 70 interchanges.
  • Place a new base aggregate layer for drainage.
  • Replace the pavement on US 53.
  • Replace the pavement on the interchange ramps at US 63 and WIS 70.
  • Replace the pavement on WIS 70 between the ramp terminals.
  • Rebuild existing intersection approaches.
  • Rehabilitate the bridges on US 53 over the Yellow River, US 53 over US 63 and WIS 70 over US 53 with concrete deck overlays and other repairs.

Work on both projects began in summer 2023 with the construction of median crossovers prior to being shut down for the winter. The start of 2024 construction is weather dependent.

During construction, US 53 will remain open to traffic in both segments. No impacts are anticipated for the week of March 25, but motorists will encounter the following the week of on both projects:

• April 1: Single-lane closures on north- and southbound US 53.
• April 8: All traffic will be switched to the southbound lanes, with one lane running in each direction as the northbound lanes are rebuilt. Traffic is expected to remain in this configuration until early July.

Construction for both projects is scheduled for completion in November.

Hoffman Construction Co. of Black River Falls is the prime contractor for the pair.