Work on Route 13 slows traffic through Eden

Glenn Ains has gotten into the habit in recent months of taking Allen Road into Salisbury from his farm on Stockyard Road in Eden.

At first, it was to avoid the major bridge replacement work on the Salisbury Bypass, but now he wants to skirt another State Highway Administration project on Route 13 just north of the Somerset County line.

“I don’t go that way at all,” he said.

For the past few weeks, crews have been milling the old asphalt along a roughly 1-mile stretch just south of the Bypass. The work has caused backups on Route 13 for people traveling from Somerset County into Wicomico County.

Ains said the work was necessary because the old layers of asphalt had started to fail, creating an uneven surface.

“I’m happy it’s going on,” he said. “It’s worth dealing with to get the road fixed.”

The $2.1 million project is now in the final paving stage, and should be wrapped up by mid-June, said SHA spokesman Charlie Gischlar.

The contractor, David A. Bramble Inc., is removing old asphalt down to the concrete base and then applying a new layer, he said. Reconstruction work like that usually is done every 15 to 20 years.

The project also includes changes to the median and left turn lane improvements at the Stockyard Road intersection by the How Sweet It Is produce and garden center, Gischlar said.

A new crossover just south of the Bypass will provide a U-turn for motorists coming out of Old Eden Road access to southbound Route 13, he said.

Ains said he was worried about the new crossover, which he thinks could create problems as vehicles making U-turns could collie with traffic exiting the Bypass.

“That’s just a bad spot,” he said. “There’s going to be issues there.”

RELATED: Salisbury Bypass lanes to reopen by summer

The work along the stretch of Route 13 frequently causes morning backups on the northbound side as residents of Somerset County and other areas to the south commute to work in Salisbury.

Each day, nearly 2,800 people commute from Somerset County to Wicomico for work, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Nearly 1,600 head in the opposite direction. Route 13 is the main link between the two counties.

The trip isn’t as bad for people who travel the opposite direction to get to work. Bill Robinson, director of public relations at the University of Maryland Eastern Shore and a Salisbury resident, said he hasn’t had any problems getting to and from work so far.

However, Robinson said he hopes the road will be open by Friday, May 26, for UMES commencement.

“We’re keeping our fingers crossed,” he said.

Gischlar said the work probably won’t be completed by then, but all lanes of the road will be open to traffic. Since it is Memorial Day weekend, crews on all state highway projects will stop working on Thursday afternoon.

The project should be done by early to mid-June, depending on weather, but until then, expect single lane closures, Gischlar said.

Meanwhle, work on the Salisbury Bypass is progressing. All four lanes are expected to be open soon north of the Route 50 exits, he said. 

Crews will continue working on the bridges on the northbound side of the road south of Route 50 into the summer months. In October, work will start to replace the bridges on the southbound side, and bi-directional traffic will be shifted to the northbound lanes.

On Twitter @LizHolland5