Construction, and traffic delays, to resume at Port Orchard's Bay Street roundabout

PORT ORCHARD — Drivers around downtown Port Orchard may see delays return to Bay Street soon, as work resumes in late April for WSDOT to finish building a roundabout at the intersection of Bay and Bethel Avenue.

After nearly five months of waiting, warmer weather allows crews to restart construction on Monday, April 29 to finish the remaining work at the roundabout. This includes installing the final layer of asphalt and stripe lanes. The single-lane roundabout is built to replace an aging traffic signal, according to a statement issued by WSDOT.

Drivers can expect one-way alternating traffic from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. each weekday and people are encouraged to add more time to help prevent delays, WSDOT said.

The crews will first repair damaged areas of the roadway and make sure other areas of the road surface are level before they pave, said Doug Adamson, a spokesperson at WSDOT. The crew will raise the height of utilities so they will be flush with the new asphalt, he said.

Following the preliminary work, which could take two weeks depending on the weather, the crew will install the final layer of asphalt.

More: New roundabout on Bay St. opens to traffic through downtown Port Orchard

"Asphalt requires a curing period before we install final lane markings," Adamson said. "Installing the final lake markings after the curing period creates a longer lasting and better-quality product. During the curing period, travelers will see temporary lane markings."

Though he could not offer a specific timeline for completion, crews will work for weeks on this project, rather than months, Adamson said.

This article originally appeared on Kitsap Sun: Construction resumes to complete Bay Street roundabout in Port Orchard