Detours in place for Oralabor Road, State Street construction in Ankeny

Two more big road projects have begun in Ankeny, creating more traffic detours for drivers.

Work to make improvements at the intersection of Southwest State Street and Southwest Oralabor Road began Monday, alongside a project to add a pedestrian tunnel under Southwest State Street.

A project to reconstruct the southbound lanes on Southwest State Street also began Monday.

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The Southwest Oralabor Road and Southwest State Street project will add a new turn signal and widen the intersection so all the approaches will have double left-turn lanes, two through lanes and a right-turn lane, according to a news release. The pedestrian tunnel will take the Oralabor Gateway Trail under Southwest State Street.

The project is meant to improve capacity and safety for drivers and pedestrians, according to city documents. Construction will take place over two seasons in five stages, with an expected completion date in fall 2024.

The first phase includes constructing a right turn lane on Southwest Oralabor Road for westbound traffic. Right turns onto Southwest State Street will not be allowed during the first phase, and the marked detour is Southwest Oralabor Road, Irvinedale Drive and Vintage Parkway.

The Ankeny City Council in March approved a construction contract with Absolute Concrete Construction of Slater for the intersection project for $6.4 million, with costs covered in part by state and federal grant funding.

The Southwest State Street project includes reconstructing the deteriorating pavement in the southbound lanes of Southwest State Street from around West First Street to around Southwest Ordnance Road.

The southbound lanes of Southwest State Street will be closed from First Street to Ordnance Road. The posted detour is West First Street, Southwest Irvinedale Drive and Southwest Vintage Parkway. Southwest State Street remains open for traffic moving north.

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The project is expected to be complete in September. There will be more closures as work continues.

The City Council in January approved a construction contract with Alliance Construction Group of Urbandale for $1.4 million.

Other major road work in Ankeny that began this year includes improvements to the intersection of 36th Street and Four Mile Drive near Costco, reconstruction of Northwest 18th Street and widening Delaware Avenue.

Chris Higgins covers the eastern suburbs for the Register. Reach him at [email protected] or 515-423-5146 and follow him on Twitter @chris_higgins_.