new town nE truck reliever route and  main street reconstruction

The Ackerman-Estvold team began work on this project in 2006 and was intimately involved in the New Town Main Street and NE Truck Reliever Route Projects until the completion of both projects in 2014/2015. During the preliminary design of the Main Street project, western North Dakota exploded with oil activity and New Town found themselves in the heart of the Bakken oil field development. Main Street in New Town quickly became the main thoroughfare connecting ND Highway 23 to both ND highway 1804 and the Four Bears Bridge crossing Lake Sakakawea. With the imperative need to reduce traffic on Main Street, the New Town NE Truck Reliever Bypass project was advanced ahead of the Main Street project. Doing this provided a sufficient alternate route that could be utilized during the Main Street Reconstruction and provide a high level of service to the traveling public.

Ackerman-Estvold completed the design of the New Town Northeast Truck Reliever Route (ND Highway 23B) in 2013. This project consisted of a new 3.2-mile rural 2-lane roadway that included turn lanes, traffic signals, intersection lighting, pavement marking, signing, drainage, wetland mitigation, and cultural resource avoidance measures. Over 1,000,000 CY of excavation and borrow was required to complete the project along with 128,000 tons of aggregate base, 33,000 tons of hot mix asphalt, 36,000 SY of 12.5” concrete pavement and 4,700 LF of pipe. This project also included right-of-way acquisition with the NDDOT and the Ackerman-Estvold team sharing the right-of-way responsibilities.

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Ackerman-Estvold’s role included the traffic operations study, noise analysis, environmental permitting, right of-way design, roadway design, hydraulic analysis and drainage design, public involvement coordination including conducting public meetings, and overall project coordination of the design and environmental assessment of the project. The environmental assessment led to a Finding of No Significant Impact (FONSI) of the preferred alternative, which required Federal Highway Administration and Bureau of Indian Affairs approval. The project also involved coordination with the City of New Town and the Three Affiliated Tribes along with other local, state, and federal agencies. Construction of this $18.9 million project was completed in 2014.

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Simultaneously, the Main Street project design was underway so that as soon as the Bypass was completed, construction work could begin on the Main Street project. The New Town Main Street Project consisted of the complete reconstruction of a 1/2 mile long urban section of roadway from ND 1804 to East Avenue, including the frontage roads and side streets. Preliminary Engineering responsibilities included a traffic operations study, preliminary surveying, and a documented CatEX. The design phase included roadway geometrics, storm drain, sidewalks, curb & gutter, medians, signing, pavement markings, and lighting. Additionally, water and sewer infrastructure was upgraded for utilities. The Ackerman-Estvold team assisted with right-of-way needs required to complete the project. During construction, the Ackerman-Estvold team worked as the City’s representative ensuring construction and progress were in the best interest of the City of New Town.  Construction of the project was completed during the 2015 construction season.