Susan Surdej, the department’s public information officer for the region encompassing Chautauqua County, said the $2.6 million project — which mills and surfaces on Washington and Third streets and Fluvanna, South, McDaniel, Fairmount and Forest avenues — has been in the works for nearly two years.

“We had a public meeting in the fall of 2018 about this project,” Surdej said. “This was a planned project and in doing so, like any project, we identify an inventory all of our roads and then rank what we need to do for maintenance paving. We combined a few different routes and pavement overlays.”

The Forest Avenue portion was completed within the last several weeks and features freshly repainted crosswalks and new pedestrian signage — even in areas where pedestrian usage may not be common.

“In all of these projects, we upgrade the pedestrian facility to make sure it meets standards — curb ramps, crosswalks, pedestrian activated signals,” she said.

“On any state highways, we do maintain our pedestrian facilities. Any time they’re updated, bring them up to current standards. … It’s just standard practice.”

The department put out the contract last November and awarded it in January. Surdej said it is on pace to meet its original completion date in October without any delays from the development of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Our construction crews really continued through the whole pandemic,” she said. “Work may have slowed down, but it never came down to a halt. Contractors were working, inspectors were working and we really weren’t seeing a whole lot of delays.”

Their work environment has also aided that, she noted.

“They work outdoors, so that definitely helps,” she said. “They’re able to accommodate the work and work safely and as a result, work just continued. With most construction, contractors and inspectors were able to figure out a way to work safely and continue on.”

While the Forest Avenue portion of the project is complete, “other segments” will continue to be worked on in the run-up to the project’s end in October, Surdej said.