The ups & downs of Phase 3

Many streets in Tracy, like 6th St. between Harvey and Rowland, have taken on a noticeable “wavy” effect since the first layer of asphalt was put down weeks ago. Photo / Per Peterson

Year by year, block by block, Tracy’s streets and infrastructure have been greatly updated through a multi-phase project. For the most part, things have gone smoothly, but there’s nothing smooth about a number of streets currently under construction.

While this summer’s 21-block Phase 3A-2 road construction project is moving along at a good pace, anyone who drives on certain newly-paved streets know full well there are issues that need to be dealt with.

“We told the council about this, the engineers have brought this up, and the contractor agrees that this is not acceptable,” City of Tracy Public Works Director Shane Daniels said. “We plan on making all the repairs prior to the second lift being installed, so there’s not a whole bunch of patches in the road.”

With one layer of asphalt down, areas of 6th, 7th, Harvey and Emory streets have developed a “wavy” surface, similar to what happened on East Morgan years ago. Daniels said it’s the belief that the wavy effect is tied in some way to the utility service lines — similar to what happened on East Morgan in the late 1990s, he said.

“They were packed in a different way than the rest of the streets,” Daniels said. “It’s the sewer and water services that are causing the issue.”

 

See more on this story in this week’s paper!