Summer construction is underway in Ames and surrounding areas, with projects on Lincoln Way and Duff Avenue, as well as U.S. Highway 30 and Interstate 35.

Art Barton, construction supervisor in Ames, said there will be a little more construction going on in Ames this summer than usual.

East Lincoln Way will be reconstructed and widened for 2,000 feet from the I-35 bridge past the Barilla plant site entrance.

“The purpose of that project is to provide widening and turning lanes for the new Barilla plant,” Barton said.

He said that East Lincoln Way will be closed to through traffic at different times. The project is expected to be finished in August.

“We are reconstructing East 13th Street from McCormick Avenue to I-35,” Barton said. “We are grading now and will be paving from late June into July and early August,” he said.

Barton said traffic will always be maintained on that route.

On the south side of Ames, asphalt resurfacing will be done on South Duff between Airport Road and Jewel Drive, Barton said. New turning lanes will also be constructed in this area.

Barton said the city will also resurface Lincoln Way from Thackery Avenue to Beedle Drive, one side at a time to maintain through traffic.

Paving for two new lanes of U.S. Highway 30 between Nevada and Colo is scheduled to begin soon.

The workers will take approximately two weeks to pave the highway. However, there will be shoulder work commencing immediately after the paving.

Barbara Bellizzi, construction engineer for the Iowa Department of Transportation (DOT), said the paving should begin any day now.

“By fall, we should have another five miles of four-lane highway,” Bellizzi said.

The project will continue for most of the month of June, according to a press release.

Although the two original lanes will remain open to traffic, travelers and commuters should be aware that there will be increased truck traffic moving on and off the project. The DOT asks motorists to allow for extra travel time throughout the month of June while driving on U.S. Highway 30.

Bellizzi said the DOT will also be patching I-35 in several places, including areas near Adventureland in Des Moines.

Bellizzi said another major project the DOT is working on is Highway 65 from Bondurant to county road S27. She said workers are extending the four-lane for another few miles and also adding culverts and bridges.

Drivers are cautioned by the DOT to pay careful attention to the signs when driving through work zones, to avoid any possible accidents or injury to the construction workers.