Major road work on Redmond Way will begin next week and drivers should expect delays in both directions of traffic for the next several weeks.

The City of Redmond’s $2.2 million Redmond Way overlay maintenance project will repair and resurface about 1.8 miles of worn and damaged pavement running east of 132nd Avenue Northeast to Bear Creek Parkway. This is the first significant maintenance project for this key commuter corridor since 1994.

The overlay project, funded mostly by federal money, is expected to be done by October, said City of Redmond project manager Joe O’Leary, who preached patience and safety to drivers.

“This is going to be a tough deal,” he said of the traffic impacts. “It will be beautiful when it’s done and it will make a big difference. But I feel the pain coming.”

Traffic speeds will be reduced from 40 mph to 30 mph during construction hours and the Redmond Police Department will have extra traffic patrols in the area to help promote safety in the construction zone, O’Leary said.

“It’s important to slow down,” O’Leary said.

The project will begin with spot construction work at multiple sites along Redmond Way. The spot work will include improvements to sub-surface drainage systems, relocation of underground utilities and curb improvements, O’Leary said.

Construction will be limited to weekday, non-peak traffic hours, beginning after 9:30 a.m. in the eastbound direction and ending by 3 p.m. in the westbound direction, according to O’Leary.

He said the spot construction is expected to be done by the end of July and then crews will begin the heavy impact work — grinding and resurfacing the road. Most of the grinding and resurfacing will be done during the weekend when commuter traffic is low, but some grinding and other work will be done during the weekdays so expect traffic impacts during all days of the week, O’Leary said.

Signage, flaggers, city Twitter alerts, alternate route postings and on-site police support will be used to keep traffic moving as smoothly as possible, according to a city new release.

In addition, the City of Kirkland is currently working on its portion of the street — along Northeast 85th Street — so the traffic impacts go beyond Redmond. Commuters should expect traffic delays anywhere along the Northeast 85th Street/Redmond Way corridor from I-405 to Bear Creek Parkway.

For the latest traffic and construction alerts follow the city’s Twitter feed at #redmondalert. Significant lane closures and construction activity will be posted on AM 1650, Redmond’s community radio station, as well as on the city’s homepage at redmond.gov.

For more information contact Marilee Crivello in the city’s Public Works Department at (425) 556-2711 or at mcrivello@redmond.gov.