Old Potash Highway project ahead of schedule

GRAND ISLAND, Neb. (KSNB) - The Old Potash Hwy project that has been blocking roads and making people take detours in Grand Island is ahead of schedule.

“I’m very excited,” GI Public Works Director John Collins said. “This project was worrying me because there’s so many businesses along it and the roads need it because eventually it would get so congested nobody would go to the businesses but while the roads are under construction, you’re hurting those poor business people.”

The city opened up Old Potash Hwy from North Road to Claude Road on Friday. The city’s first multi-lane roundabout on Old Potash Hwy and Wilmer Avenue on the other hand still has a ways to go and won’t be expected to done until August.

Collins said when it’s all said and done, the new additions will help traffic move faster and make it safer as the community continues to grow.

“Roundabouts will allow each intersection to operate more quickly, just zip on through them and then finally we’re adding lanes, so that most of it will be two lanes in each direction,” Collins said.

If the weather permits and nothing goes wrong, Collins said this $15 million project should be done by the end of the year.

Copyright 2021 KSNB. All rights reserved.