NORTH WINDHAM – This week’s weather forecast, which called for temperatures 50 degrees and below, means the intersection of routes 115 and 35 in North Windham, also known as Boody’s Corner, will not be repaved until next spring, or even later depending on the weather, according to Maine Department of Transportation Project Manager Denis Lovely.

A $1.1 million reconstruction project, known as a “mill-and-fill project,” along a 1.16-mile stretch of North Windham’s Route 302, from the route’s 115/35 intersection to Whites Bridge Road, was completed by Pike Industries and overseen by the state in mid-August.

The project began July 14, at the height of the tourist season, and lasted six weeks, with crews working at night to replace the top layer of pavement to fix ruts along the roadway and washboard surfaces at the approaches to intersections.

An analysis of core pavement samples, taken by Maine Department of Transportation crews last month, revealed rut issues within a layer that sits 5 inches beneath the surface pavement applied by Pike Industries this summer, Lovely said last week.

According to Lovely, the reappearance of ruts on the newly paved road was noticed particularly at the approaches to intersections, “where traffic stops and goes.”

Lovely said analysis of the samples taken in September revealed “plastic deformation” in an underlying layer of pavement, which is contributing to the remaining rutting issues.

“Plastic deformation describes what happens when the asphalt mix moves or deforms under traffic loads, and the material does not return to its previous shape, flat and smooth, after it deforms,” versus an elastic deformation, said Lovely, which “describes what happens when the asphalt mix moves or deforms under traffic loads, and the material does return to its previous shape.”

Last week, transportation department spokesman Ted Talbot said Pike Industries was slated to return to the intersection the week of Oct. 21 at night to remove and replace 6-7 inches of pavement from several areas of rutting in the intersection. Pike was involved in another recent paving job that had to be redone, the Naples Causeway.

Multiple calls to Pike went unanswered by deadline.

The reconstruction of the intersection was expected to take a week, a majority of it during the day. Lovely said this week’s declining temperatures were not desirable for paving projects, which usually take place in temperatures of 50 degrees and warmer. Paving projects statewide must be completed by mid-November due to weather, according to Lovely.

Change of plans

On Monday, Talbot said the plans for reconstructing the roadway had changed, at least until spring.

On Tuesday, crews from Pike Industries put a thin layer of pavement on a lane northbound and a lane southbound at the Boody’s Corner intersection, about 150 feet in each direction, Talbot said.

At the Windham council meeting Tuesday, Town Manager Tony Plante informed the council about the roadwork that took place on Route 302, saying he wanted to thank “people who were patient enough to sit through the [traffic] delays. It really was the only way to handle that intersection,” Plante said of Tuesday’s project.

“What MDOT is going to do for this fall is done,” he said. “We won’t have to deal with any more interruptions there [Route 302] until next year.”

Due to concerns of the pavement quality as colder weather and ground temperatures approach, a thin layer was applied to intersection approaches Tuesday to prevent the ruts from getting worse through the winter, Talbot said. The roadwork began at 6 a.m. and lasted into the late afternoon.

“It will be a nice, smooth ride for commuters, and it’s easier for plows. It will be just like a new road until the spring,” when the pavement will once again be torn up, Talbot said.

According to Lovely, “The fine, hot [asphalt] mix [was] dragged over the areas that were rutted. The purpose is to fill in the ruts so they don’t hold water or snow, and so it’s easier to maintain throughout the winter.”

Mid to late October, Talbot said, is not the “optimal” time to pave. Full reconstruction of the intersection, which would have required lane closures during the day, is being stalled and will be done at night next spring in order to minimize the daytime traffic delays, he said.

“It will give us the opportunity to assure we are addressing all of the rutting issues,” Talbot said.

Intersection of routes 115 and 35 in North Windham, also known as Boody’s Corner.Rte. 302 paving work.