Area to see slate of roadwork projects

The Keystone and Hill City area highways will be under construction for the next few years according to a recent South Dakota Department of Transportation (DOT) update. 

Work began Monday, May 11 on a project to improve the intersection on U.S. Hwy. 16 at Cosmos Road. The project includes the construction of a new turn lane at the intersection of Hwy. 16 and Cosmos Road.

Traffic will be limited to the driving lanes — both north and southbound — a 45 mile per hour speed limit and a 16-foot width restriction through the work zone.

Work will be taking place in the median.

There are other improvements on U.S. Hwy. 16 at the intersections of Enchantment Road, Table Truck Road and Promise Road in Rapid City. The project also includes intersection improvement on South Dakota Hwy. 79 at Black Gap Road, which is scheduled to begin in the next few weeks.

The prime contractor on this $1.1 million project is Mainline Contracting of Rapid City. The overall completion date for the project is Oct. 30. 

On Sheridan Lake Road, work began Monday, May 11, as well, starting with tree removal.

Motorists are advised traffic will be disrupted from Albertta Drive west towards U.S. Hwy. 385. Left-hand turns across lanes are discouraged to allow for continued flow of traffic.

Motorists are asked to be aware of suddenly slowing and merging traffic, changing work zone locations, reduced speeds through the work zone and construction workers and equipment adjacent to the driving lanes.

The prime contractor on the $22.9 million project is Oftedal Construction, Inc., of Miles City, Mont. The overall completion date for the project is July 1, 2022.

Work begins in the fall of 2020 on the Keystone Wye bridges. Both bridges will be under construction at the same time.

Timbers, concrete columns, and abutments will be repaired. Pavement and guardrails will be replaced. Traffic will be diverted around the bridges with minimal delays expected. The work is set to be completed in the winter or spring of 2021.

The fall of 2021 will bring curb upgrades to sidewalks on South Dakota Hwy. 40 through Keystone. This will make them Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) accessible. The work will be done during nonpeak tourist times, when possible.

Access to businesses and homes will not be restricted during constructions. The project is set to end in the spring or summer of 2022.

Work on replacing the bridge on Hwy. 244 at the Palmer Gulch Kampground of America (KOA) will begin in the fall of 2022.

The replacement of the bridge will require the road to be closed at the Palmer Gulch KOA and the DOT expects the closure to be completed prior to the 2023 tourist season.  Access to the KOA and Willow Creek Horse Camp will not be restricted.

Closing the road at the bridge will limit environmental impacts to the Black Hills National Forest and help speed up the construction project. The road will be widened to accommodate turn lanes.

The bridge at the intersection of South Dakota Hwy. 40 and U.S. Hwy16A in Keystone will be replaced in the fall of 2023. Work is not expected to impact the 2024 tourist season. Traffic will be maintained during the project, which includes intersection improvements, new traffic signals and ADA curb ramps and sidewalks.