Work is progressing on schedule with the full-deck replacement of the New Hampshire Route 11 bridge over the Blackwater River in Cilleyville, near the intersection of New Hampshire Route 4A. New concrete headwalls are in place to support new steel beams for the eastbound half of the bridge. Concrete placement for the new deck is expected in early June.

Once the new deck is ready for vehicles, traffic will be shifted onto this new deck, and the westbound half of the bridge will be reconstructed. Beck and Bellucci of Franklin is the general contractor on this $1.57 million project, which is expected to be completed in October.

East of Andover Village

Work to replace the culvert carrying Mitchell Brook under New Hampshire Route 11 just east of Andover Village, between North Street and US 4 towards Salisbury, is expected to begin by mid-June. The project will replace the existing 48-inch culvert with a precast box culvert and raise the highway by nearly three feet.

This work is intended to prevent a repeat of the flooding that occurred in the large storm in May 2006. In that storm, Mitchell Brook overtopped the highway, causing erosion along the side of the highway. Soon thereafter, the water level of the Blackwater River rose over the highway, blocking all traffic for more than a day.

The new, larger structure will prevent Mitchell Brook from backing up over the highway, and the higher road elevation is above the normal flood elevation of the Blackwater River.

Work on this structure will begin in late June, with one lane of traffic controlled by temporary traffic signals. Traffic will be shifted from the old road to the new structure in phases as the work progresses.

The project will be substantially complete and the traffic signals will be removed before Labor Day, with final cleanup occurring in early September. FL Merrill of Pembroke is the general contractor on this $467,700 project.