Work on N.C. 101 to start Monday

Contractors are scheduled to begin initial work on repaving Fontana Boulevard and N.C. 101 on Monday, according to a release.

The first phase of repaving and widening the two-lane highway is the removal of the top inches of asphalt currently on the road. A gravel mixture will then be put on the road, said Diane Miller, Havelock spokeswoman.

The gravel mixture will make for a rougher ride on the highway until the final paving and widening are complete.

Miller said in the release that crews are scheduled to begin Monday, most likely after rush hour, just east of Cherry Point's Cunningham gate, working on the eastbound lane of the road and then working on the westbound lane.

During the work, Fontana Boulevard will be reduced to one lane. Drivers can use McCotter Boulevard, Shipman Road and Webb Boulevard as alternate routes during the construction.

The N.C. Department of Transportation received a $3.3 million bid from S.T. Wooten Corp. of Wilson to widen and resurface 13 miles of N.C. 101 from Havelock to the Carteret County line and resurface one mile of N.C. 306.

The highway is to receive a 1 1/2-inch layer of pavement and be widened three feet on each side, creating two 12-foot paved lanes and a two-foot paved shoulder.

N.C. 306 will be resurfaced from N.C. 101 to the Cherry Branch ferry station. A rough portion of the road will get 3 inches of fresh pavement and the remainder will get 1 1/2 inches.