The start of the largest city road construction project in many years begins next week, with lane closures for the Aurora Road construction project starting on Monday, September 25. Solon students do not have school on Monday, but families should be prepared for project-related delays when school resumes on Tuesday.
Preliminary work in the area to relocate utility lines and other necessary project preparation has already taken place and resulted in traffic delays. The start of the actual construction and the prolonged lane closures westbound on Aurora just east of SOM Center Road (adjacent to Burger King) will magnify the impact on all traffic in the surrounding area. Only one lane of one-way traffic, which will be heading eastbound, will be maintained. The construction project is slated to take more than a year. Please see the detailed description of the project’s scope from the City of Solon at the bottom of this message.
IMPACT ON SOLON SCHOOL BUSES
Our Transportation Department has already rerouted the 19 buses that were using the affected stretch of Aurora Road to get to their routes with only minimal impacts to their schedules.
An additional 6 bus routes required significant changes to stop times and stop locations. The parents/guardians of students who ride those 6 buses were notified yesterday by our Transportation Department about the changes that will start on Tuesday, September 26. If your child rides any of the following buses and you have not seen an updated bus route notification, please contact the Transportation Department at transportation@solonboe.org or 440-349-6250. SHS Bus 3, SMS Bus 3, Lewis Bus 28, Parkside Bus 31, SMS Bus 41 and Orchard Bus 62.
All other buses that travel near that area or on nearby roads, as well as subsequent routes to the ones listed above, will also likely experience slowdowns/delays throughout the project. Traffic will be heavier on surrounding roads, especially on Bainbridge, Liberty and Pettibone Roads. Next week may feel like the first week of school again as we learn in real time the impact of the changed traffic patterns on our route times. We have changed the routes as much as possible, but some buses must still travel along Aurora Road.
CAR TRAVEL
Just like our buses, all car traffic will be affected by the Aurora westbound lane closure and detours. Bainbridge, Liberty and Pettibone Roads will see increased car traffic and congestion. We urge everyone – SHS student drivers, parents who drive their children to school and Solon staff members - who drive near Aurora Road and the alternate roads to build additional time into your morning schedule to allow for increased travel times to get to school on time.
An additional road resurfacing project on Liberty Road from Pettibone to the Solon-Twinsburg border is starting today and will continue for the next month. This could add delays in that area as well.
We will communicate with you directly if additional information regarding the Aurora Road project impacts school transportation. In the meantime, thank you for your cooperation as we all navigate these road construction challenges together.
FROM THE CITY OF SOLON WEBSITE - AURORA ROAD CONSTRUCTION PROJECT:
Aurora Road Reconstruction Project - Phase 1
The Aurora Road Reconstruction Project consists of the widening and reconstruction of 1.1 miles of Aurora Road from approximately 0.2 miles east of SOM Center Road to Andre Lane. The project includes the installation of storm drainage, water main, a 10’ wide multi-use path on the south side of Aurora Road from the beginning of the project to Liberty Road, sidewalks on the north side of Aurora Road from the beginning of the project to Andre Lane, sidewalks on the south side of Aurora Road from Liberty Road to Andre Lane, traffic signal modifications at the Aurora & Portz Parkway Intersection and traffic signal modifications at the Aurora & Liberty Road intersection.
The project also includes resurfacing of Liberty Road from Pettibone Road to Spicebush Lane and the reconstruction of Liberty Road from Spicebush Lane north to the existing railroad tracks north of Aurora Road. A 10’ wide multi-use path will be installed on the west side of Liberty Road from Aurora Road south to Spicebush. A sidewalk will be installed on the Westside of Liberty road from Aurora Road north to the existing railroad tracks.
The project is expected to be substantially complete by late fall of 2024. Various items of work such as Traffic Signal & Pole installation, lawn restoration, final Punch list and clean-up is expected to continue through spring of 2025.
Tri Mor is the prime contractor. They intend to work 4 – 10 hour days each week Monday through Thursday using Friday as a make-up day. Residents should expect that they will work 7:00 am – 7:00 pm Monday through Saturday. No night work or road closures are planned for this project but sometimes special arrangements help accomplish a task in the most productive and least disruptive manner. Residents will be notified of any night work.
The project is scheduled to start on Monday, September 25th. At the start of the project, one lane of one-way traffic will be maintained in the eastbound direction from Burger King to Liberty Road. Eventually (maybe as early as Thanksgiving) one-way eastbound traffic will be extended through the Liberty Road Intersection to Andre Lane.
