Public Works & Planning

Elkhorn Avenue Road Reconstruction

View on Elkhorn looking west from the Fowler intersection, showing a straight two‑lane rural roadway with worn asphalt and dark wheel‑path discoloration. Orchards line the south side, open fields border the north side, and utility poles run along the roadway.

The Surface Transportation Block Grant program (STBG) provides flexible funding that may be used by States and localities for projects to preserve and improve the conditions and performance on any Federal-aid highway, bridge and tunnel projects on any public road, pedestrian and bicycle infrastructure, and transit capital projects. The Department submitted a STBG application for the Elkhorn Avenue Road Reconstruction project on September 29, 2023. We will know whether or not the project is funded by the end of January 2024.

Elkhorn Avenue between Fowler Avenue and SR 43 is a 2‐lane Major Collector with dirt shoulders and 12‐foot‐wide travel lanes (24 feet total). The existing roadway surface is old, oxidized, fraught with alligator cracking, and longitudinal and transversal cracking in places. Dig outs where necessary in the existing pavement section and subsequent resurfacing will provide a smooth driving surface, enhancing safety and increasing the longevity of the road. The project is expected to provide a useful life of at least 20 years, provided that timely maintenance is performed as necessary. This project will supplement funding for a proposed CMAQ project that will pave 4‐foot shoulders on the roadway within the same limits, further promoting improved air quality and safety.

The proposed project consists of a 0.2’ asphalt concrete overlay on the existing 24‐foot travel way on Elkhorn Avenue from Fowler Avenue and SR 43 (approximately 3 miles).

The expected benefits of the project are to preserve the existing road, prolong its useful life, improve the driving conditions of the road, reduce airborne particulate matter and amount of dust in the air caused by passing traffic, and reduce accidents by creating a smoother and safer road surface.

The project was awarded $1,074,926 in STBG funding for 88.53% of the project cost. Currently, this project in the preliminary engineering phase. Construction is expected to take place in 2027-28.

View of roadway on Elkhorn near the Highland intersection showing extensive surface cracking across the asphalt. The pavement displays multiple interconnected cracks and worn areas, with the road edge meeting a dirt shoulder.