Chillicothe — If you’ve seen the progress on rebuilding Bridge Street at US 35 in the last couple of weeks, here is a lot of backstory on that.
Matt Bruning, former local radio newsman and now press secretary for ODOT, offered me a tour of the work on Bridge Street…as a giant paving machine was being assembled on June 5th, 2026 to recreate the southbound lanes.
I took much advantage of his hospitality, walking with him for an hour-and-a-half and almost half a mile from Shawnee Square to Marietta Road.
Bruning explained the reason for reconstructing the pavement, changing or adding lanes, building a sidewalk and “shared use path,” how the traffic lights will be improved, and more.
Hear him in his own words in below five videos.
- start at Shawnee Square / Stewart Road
- unloading and assembling the big concrete paving machine: two lanes in one swath
- full-depth replacement of 13 inches of 1960s concrete from Stewart Road to North Plaza Boulevard
- “rebuilding the road from the dirt up”
- pouring one side now, than switching traffic over later
- not able to open southbound lanes until the fall pause of work
- consensus was that northbound traffic was higher priority
- unnerving traffic only feet away, on other side of plastic barrels
- increasing numbers of cyclists and pedestrians need safe space
- at the eastbound US 35 offramp
- reason for closing ramp included narrowing the three-lane ramp to one
- don’t expect onramp to open until November
- just don’t move barrels to use the High Street onramp or make U-turns on US 35
- straightening end of offramp to make turn onto Bridge Street easier
- not able to plan for everything 60 years ago
- the corridor has always had issues: “fixing Bridge Street” in old news
- entire single lane laid in one day
- no more continuous right turn, for pedestrian safety
- surveying for sidewalk on west side
- wider “shared path” on east side to allow cycles
- always been a 2 1/3 year plan: short 2027 season to finish work on paths
- will reopen open by Thanksgiving
- yes, penalties for contractors if run late
- rain delayed start of construction, but not lost much time since
- underpass: strength of columns, retaining walls / abutments
- aesthetics and rest areas on sidewalks
- laying concrete at the onramp: forming the curb
- new dedicated “drop lane” for westbound onramp
- at Marietta Road
- core samples to confirm quality of work, what taxpayers are paying for
- accommodating businesses – maintaining access: always a way to get there
- much planning required to change streets
- but there’s always something you don’t expect: asbestos in front of Bob Evans
- aesthetics of traffic lights: mast arms
- radar sensors to detect traffic – easier to replace, can interconnect and control traffic better
- improving onramp turn lane flow
- signal cabinets identify who is responsible: city or state
- sensors on poles detect emergency lights and give exemption
- rebar used inside concrete pavement
- ends at assembling paving machine at Shawnee Square
- want to make safer for traffic as well as pedestrians and cyclists
- Bruning uses his personal Facebook to help inform
- find info on ODOT webpage: “very robust”
- weekly recap on Fridays
- planning ahead of construction: open houses to introduce project are still on ODOT website
- finished project will be so much better
- this is needed work and there was no way to avoid inconveniences
- plan ahead!
- Narrows Road is narrow!
- repaving High Street next year
- official state detour is from High Street to Main, not Water
Other nearby projects:
- US23 bypass repaving
- Charleston Pike closed for less than 60 days
- Pleasant Valley Rd right turns
- no more battery!
Search for previous stories on planning the Bridge Street reconstruction on the Scioto Post.
