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12.25.2023 – Pictures taken today of mainly the connector south exit at Wilson Street for East and West Brewer traffic. This ramp will soon merge with the existing I-395 to Brewer West and I-395 South exit off Wilson Street. To go East on Wilson Street, with this new connector, requires one to first travel westbound past Lowe’s and enter the “to the east” jug handle. How will that workout? I predict, not so well..
12.24.2023 – Pictures of the blasting progress on Levonseller Road:
Guard rail damage on the Easter Avenue Underpass:
12.16.2023 – Pictures to the north of Route 1A and Wilson Street:
12.16.2023 – Workers at the Eaton Brook Bridge construction on Friday the 15th:
12.02.2023 – Work has progressed at Eaton Brook; initial concrete pour, removal of forms and grading around foundation:
11.16.2023 – The jughandle at Lowe’s has been paved – this allows traffic to reverse back to the east towards Ellsworth and Bar Harbor from the connector What is a jughandle? Read on after the pictures:
11.12.2023 – Work continues in the field south of Eastern Avenue to Wilson Street. I stand in the middle of the field and have no idea of the traffic patterns:
11.11.2023 – Work continues on the Eaton Brook bridge:
11.04.2023 – The Eastern Avenue Speedway opened up last night.
2 layers of asphalt in he travel lane of the connector from Eaton Brook to past the Eastern Avenue Overpass:
Work progresses on the Eaton Brook bridge:
11.03.2023 – Guard rails going up on Eastern Avenue.
11.02.2023 – Early morning on a Friday – looks like Eastern Avenue is getting close to being done – looks like guard rails are being installed today…
11.01.2023 – A second layer of asphalt from Eaton Brook to past the Eastern Avenue Overpass. Bridge deck was sealed this morning and ground work being performed.
10.31.2023 – Paving continued north and south of Eastern Avenue; guard rail installation in progress.
10.30.2023 – Paving started from Eaton Brook – south – to Eastern Avenue:
10.27.2023 – Video of paving from today:
10.26.2023 – The area around the Eastern Avenue Overpass has been readied for paving:
10.24.2023 – First two pictures show grading and rolling operation from Eaton Brook to Eastern Avenue and the third picture (x30) shows the paving operation coming from the north to Eaton Brook.
10.21.2023 – Milling operation completed on the Eastern Avenue Overpass; work started on the bridge at Eaton Brook:
10.19.2023 – Milling started on the deck of the Eastern Avenue Overpass:
10.18.2023 – Work continues at Eastern Avenue: rails going up on the overpass, electrical work at the western side of the overpass, the temporary water main removal and continued work on water main.
10.15.2023 – Drone footage from this weekend.
10.12.2023 – Pictures taken today.
The start of bridgework over Eaton Brook:
The plastic tarp covering the deck on the Eastern Avenue Underpass was removed today and the road has been graded to the deck surface to facilitate the pouring of the curbing on the bridge deck scheduled for Friday.
10.07.2023 – Road grading continued at Eastern Avenue and the decking was poured on the 5th. The Clewleyville Road Bridge is open per a Face Book posting:
10.03.2023 – Water main has been insulated and then buried; electrical work started at the last pole – suspect it is power for underpass signage and heat tape for the water main.
10.01.2023 – Sunday flight over Eastern Avenue:
9.29.2023 – Bridge Decking Machine delivered to Eastern Avenue this morning:
Later in the day as they set up the machine:
9.24.2023 – Video of the Eastern Avenue Underpass:
9.23.2023 – A weekend workday at Eastern Avenue; progress at Clewleyville Road and initial work at Levensellar Road:
9.23.2023 – Water main and bridge work continues on Eastern Avenue:
9.21.2023 – Water main work continues:
9.19.2023 – Water main work continues:
9.16.2023 – Bridge and water main work continues on both sides of bridge.
Pictures from the end of the day on 9.14.2023:
End of the day on 8.15.2023:
9.13.2023 – Steel day on Eastern Avenue:
9.11.2023 – Lots of work in multiple locations at Eastern Avenue:
9.10.2023 – Foundations are near complete at Eastern Avenue. Steel coming this week.
9.06.2023 – A noisy, hot and smoky day on Eastern Avenue:
9.05.2023 – Lots of work on both sides of Eastern Avenue today:
9.03.2023 – North and south of Eastern Avenue:
9.01.2023 – Watch the dump truck saying I think I can, I think I can – never mind…
8.28.2023 – Ledge is slowing down drainage pipe installation:
8.28.2023 – Another rainy weekend:
8.24.2023 – Drainage being installed at Eastern Avenue:
8.19.2023 – Concrete pour on the eastern foundation at Eastern Avenue:
8.13.2023 – An interesting Bangor Daily News article 28 years after the fact makes me wonder what they will write about the connector in the year 2051…
8.13.2023 – A Sunday walk around Eastern Avenue:
8.11.2023 – Friday afternoon:
8.09.2023 – TRIP.net reports out on Maine’s Infrastructure in a July 2023 report:
“A total of 44% of Maine’s major roads are in poor or mediocre condition.”
No change over the past year since July 2022 report.
“Driving on deteriorated roads costs Maine motorists $581 million a year – $555 per driver – in the form of additional repairs, accelerated vehicle depreciation, and increased fuel consumption and tire wear.”
No change over the past year since July 2022 report.
“A total of 14% of Maine’s bridges are rated in poor/structurally deficient condition, meaning there is significant deterioration to the major components of the bridge.”
That has increased from 13% in the past year since July 2022 report.
“A total of 59% of the state’s bridges are at least 50 years old, a age when many bridges require significant rehabilitation or replacement.”
No change over the past year since the July 2022 report.
Additional data added 8.11.2023:
2023 Bridge Data from the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA):
2,521 Total Bridges in Maine
645 bridges in good condition or 25.6% of Maine’s bridges are rated good
1,504 bridges in fair condition or 59.7% of Maine’s bridges are rated fair
372 bridges in poor condition or 14.8% of Maine’s bridges are rated poor
8.09.2023 – Tent was removed early morning after the big storms went through last night.
8.08.2023 – A tent was erected to enable the slab to be poured today.
8.07.2023 – Slab being formed up in front of bridge foundation:
8.06.2023 – Last pour for the western foundation was done on Friday:
8.02.2023 – Additional form work on center section of western foundation:
8.01.2023 – Western foundation on Eastern Avenue underpass backfill operation near completion:
7.31.2023 – Drone stills from Sunday afternoon:
7.30.2023 – The Clewleyville Underpass is months ahead of the progress at Eastern Ave.
Eastern Avenue:
7.28.2023 – Still filling in the western bridge foundation on Eastern Avenue:
7.28.2023 – Recent Bangor Daily News article:
7.27.2023 – Thursday’s progress:
7.25.2023 – Drainage and backfill of Eastern Avenue western foundation:
7.24.2023 – A short flight at Eastern Avenue:
7.22.2023 – Final concrete was poured and forms being removed on western side of Eastern Avenue Underpass; pile-driving complete on both sides of Eaton Brook:
7.17.2023 – Suspect more concrete coming tomorrow:
7.15.2023 – From Eastern Avenue to Route 1A:
The following few pictures show the use of composite aggregate.
Composite aggregate in the bags below are the same as used to restore I-95 recently in PA.
7.11.2023 – Pile driving completed on the northern bank of Eaton Brook and has started on the southern bank. More form work on the Eastern Avenue Underpass and a few pictures of the progress at Clewleyville Road:
Clewleyville Road Underpass
Updated Eastern Avenue Underpass
7.06.2023 – Concrete pour this morning:
6.28.2023 – Forming continues:
6.26.2023 – More forming after last week’s pour:
6.26.2023 – Pile-driving on the north bank of Eaton Brook:
6.24.2023 – Pictures from the end of the week that show pile-driving at Eaton Brook, more concrete and the snowmobile underpass:
6.22.2023 – Where were these complaints twenty years ago?
6.18.2023 – Progress north and south of Eastern Avenue:
Is the following the new snowmobile underpass?
Forming continues on the western bank of Eastern Avenue.
Pile driving on the northern bank of Eaton Brook.
6.11.2023 – Forming continues on the bridge foundations:
6.07.2023 – Two articles from the Bangor Daily News; what I keyed in were these statements:
“But the Maine Department of Transportation is still operating roughly $265 million short annually of what it needs to maintain its entire system, Commissioner Bruce Van Note told lawmakers on Tuesday.”
“Despite more federal funding being available, his department is still managing $265 million annually in unmet needs across the transportation system.”
The Commissioner suggested, in Jan 2021, an annual $232 million unmet transportation need was “generally consistent” with shortfalls in the 2021 MaineDOT work plan.
The Commissioner intentionally left the annual unmet transportation shortfall figure out of the past two Work Plans, and any other conversation over the past two years.
So, our annual unmet transportation needs, with all the extra funding that the DOT likes to talk about, has worsened by $33 million/year to a staggering $265 million shortfall per year…
Hard to believe that the state opted to fund this $100 million project, that many questioned the need for, while the state infrastructure suffers a $265 million shortfall/year!!
6.04.2023 – An after-thought? An area has been dug back up, south of Eastern Avenue, to install concrete square duct which appears to coincide with the snowmobile trail that was no longer accessible.
5.21.2023 – Foundation work on Friday the 19th:
5.12.2023 – Concrete day on Eastern Avenue in photos and videos:
5.11.2023 – Another broken promise? Turnaround’s? Where are they?? They are using our neighborhoods as the turnaround.
Click here to see for yourself.
5.11.2023 – Not much going on over the last few days, suspect crew working elsewhere:
5.07.2023 – This weekend’s pictures – foundation progress:
5.04.2023 – Another rainy day – work continues on foundations:
5.03.2023 – Wednesday morning:
4.29.2023 – Weekend pictures. Workers visited the site to make sure the concrete stayed wet which is required to prevent cracking.
4.28.2023 – First pour at Eastern Avenue:
After supper:
4.27.2023 – A foggy start to Thursday:
After supper pictures:
4.25.2023 – A rainy start to the day:
Pictures at the end of the day:
4.24.2023 – Forming continues on the eastern bank of Eastern Avenue:
4.23.2023 – Sunday pictures:
Pictures taken from the eastern foundation of the Eastern Avenue Underpass:
The Clewleyville Road Underpass is months ahead of Eastern Avenue:
4.22.2023 – Weekend pictures; re-bar work and still lots of water from recent rains:
4.21.2023 – Work continues on the eastern foundation:
4.20.2023 – Work continues on the western foundation of the Eastern Avenue underpass:
Later in the day:
4.19.2023 – Wednesday morning work on the western foundation:
4.18.2023 – Last night’s rain has halted work at Eastern Avenue:
4.17.2023 – Monday morning at Eastern Avenue:
Later in the day:
4.15.2023 – Saturday morning at Eastern Avenue:
4.14.2023 – Friday:
4.13.2023 – Thursday after workers left:
Presuming the final road grade is now being established on the right of the picture below. Road to be final-graded at a negative 0.5 degrees as it approaches Eastern Avenue.
4.12.2023 – Wednesday @ 8:00 a.m. :
End of the day:
4.11.2023 – Forming starting on Eastern Avenue Underpass:
4.10.2023 – Monday morning – a Hydro Vac truck comes to town:
Later in the day:
4.09.2023 – A shortened drone flight due to wind gusts:
4.09.2023 – Pictures north of Eastern Avenue to Eaton Brook:
4.08.2023 – Pictures of the progress of the Clewleyville Underpass:
4.08.2023 – Pictures taken today of the progress south of Eastern Avenue towards I-395 and the progress at Eastern Avenue. Foundation work has started on the eastern side of the cut at Eastern Avenue.
4.07.2023 – Today’s updates:
4.06.2023 – Today’s construction:
4.05.2023 – Today’s Eastern Avenue construction:
Later in the day:
4.04.2023 – Found these two videos on YouTube:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mEB6iofAzh8
Above video offered by Maurice Brown about a month ago.
3.25.2023 – Pictures taken today following the first week of the Eastern Avenue underpass construction and a revisit to Clewleyville Road.
Eastern Avenue:
Clewleyville Road:
3.20.2023 – Work has started on the Eastern Avenue underpass:
3.09.2023 – Eastern Avenue road closure on March 20th.
2.03.2023 – The 2023 MaineDOT Work Plan is out – it used to be clear (until 2 years ago) what the unmet transportation needs of this state were; the last we knew they were some -$232 million/year. Now with a lot of word salad, one is left not knowing if Maine is still behind or flush with money…
One thing that I find interesting is that the MaineDOT is still using the same map that shows this new connector blasting right thru an area marked as protected wetlands.
The “I-395 PROTECTED WETLANDS” are north and south of the intersection of I-395/1A and an area adjacent to Green Point Road. One of MaineDOT’s talking points was that the selection of the 2B-2 alternative showed that the DOT were “stewards of the environment”, YET they ignored this map since this study began because it didn’t fit into their plans. Shame on the state and federal agencies that allowed this farce to continue.
1.12.2023 – Water main that parallels the northern side of Eastern Avenue is being bypassed in preparation for the Eastern Avenue bridge:
1.09.2023 – Posted news release:
1-06-2023 – A news article from Channel 5 and an update from the official DOT website concerning detour on Clewleyville Road:
1-04-2023 – Drone footage of the immediate area just north of Eastern Avenue:
1-01-2023 – Pictures taken on 12/31/2022.
The following pictures show the ledge issues on Clewleyville Road:
The following pictures are of the area around the Lambert Road bridge construction: