Chip Seal and Fog Seal Projects to Begin on S.D. Highway 71 and U.S. Highway 18 in Southwest South Dakota

For Immediate Release: Tuesday, June 6, 2023

Contact: Isaac Schulz, Project Engineer, 605-440-1408

CUSTER, S.D. – Crews will begin chip seal and fog seal projects on portions of S.D. Highway 71 and U.S. Highway 18 starting Wednesday, June 14, 2023. The contractor will move from one project to the next in the scheduled following order:

• S.D. Highway 71 – Project begins at the South Dakota/Nebraska state line heading north for 17.5 miles. The chip seal and fog seal will take place Wednesday, June 14, 2023, through Tuesday, June 20, 2023.
• U.S. Highway 18 – Project begins heading east out of Oelrichs for 25.5 miles to Oglala. The chip seal and fog seal will take place Wednesday, June 21, 2023, through Friday, June 30, 2023.

Traffic will be reduced to one lane and guided through all projects with the use of flaggers and a pilot car. Delays of up to 15 minutes can be expected while traveling through the work area during daytime hours. The contractor will be working Monday through Saturday for the duration of the projects.

Loose gravel will be present on all projects for a period of 36 to 72 hours after each day’s chip seal application. Traffic is advised to travel 45 miles per hour or the posted speed limit if it is less than the advised speed during this timeframe. Permanent pavement striping is scheduled to be applied seven days after the chip seal on each project.

The prime contractor on the $1.9 million project is Bituminous Paving Inc. from Ortonville, MN. The completion date for these projects will be Friday, June 30, 2023.

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