$19 Million Roadway Project Begins In Rogers County; Some Drivers Expect Delays

Rogers County is working on a $19 million project to reconstruct the crossway on East 300 Road that crosses Oologah Lake and four miles of asphalt on East 300 Road on the western part of the lake.

Major flooding events over the last few years have done extensive damage to the causeway. This includes cracked and damaged asphalt, loss of subgrade, riprap and settlement.

Currently, work has started on the slope below the road leading up to the road itself. Rogers County Commissioner for District 2 Steve Hendrix said this initial work will help try to stabilize the road better and help with erosion.

The work would then move to other phases including making repairs on the actual road.

"They are able to actually get the equipment down into the lake area and start. They have to build a toe slope. That will hold that riprap as they start to build that wall back up to the road, and that is for erosion," Hendrix said.

While work is ongoing, Hendrix said drivers are going to have to be patient going over the causeway on the western part of the road because it's down to one lane.

"For right now, it’s one lane. You may have to wait six or seven minutes, but there’s a clock up there that tells you approximately what your wait time is. We’re going to have to deal with the traffic and keep them moving as best we can," Hendrix said.

Hendrix said he hopes the overall project will keep the road from taking on damage in the future or being destroyed entirely if the road floods again. Hendrix expects all of the work on the overall project, not just the initial work, to be completed sometime in the spring of next year.