East Lyme ― Almost a quarter of the way into a four year, $148 million reconstruction of the Interstate 95 Exit 74 interchange, crews on Wednesday were preparing to meet the project’s first major milestone.

While the existing northbound off-ramp continued to spit drivers out at the convoluted intersection with Route 161 in front of Starbucks, subcontractors working for general contractor Manafort Brothers of Plainville were readying a new off-ramp 500 feet down the state road.

State Department of Transportation (DOT) project engineer Andrew Millovitsch said the new off ramp is scheduled to open at 6 a.m. Friday, if all goes according to plan. The old, shuttered off-ramp will eventually be swallowed up by the new commuter lot to be constructed as one of the last major improvements before the project’s expected completion in the spring of 2027.

The DOT by the end of November had spent roughly 24%, or $35 million, of the overall project budget, according to Millovitsch.

“I can confidently say we are on time and on budget,” he said.

Crews on the unopened off-ramp Wednesday were installing guard rails, cycling through a new signalized intersection to make sure it was detecting vehicles, and installing wrong-way signs in anticipation of the expected opening.

The new off-ramp will be longer than its predecessor and have three lanes where it ends across from Burger King, he said. The added length gives drivers more time to slow down so backups and rear-end collisions are reduced.

Millovitsch said each project milestone is significant because it means the contractor can move on to the next phase and keep the project on track.

“Opening this ramp opens up a lot of possibilities for the contractor to perform work,” he said.

He described the timing of the new off-ramp as a gift of sorts.

“We understand that our presence here hasn’t been 100% welcomed by everybody and we understand that we impact their daily lives and their travel plans,” he said. “But we kind of thought that actually delivering this off-ramp before Christmas was sort of a Christmas present to the town and the traveling public.”

Also expected to finish up before the holidays is the blasting project that has closed both sides of the highway for short intervals most weekdays since Aug. 1 as crews dislodged 800 feet of ledge. The goal was to keep the closures below 20 minutes, though that didn’t always happen in the densest areas of rock.

Millovitsch said tentative plans are to conclude blasting work by the Thursday before Christmas. Either way, there will be no blasting that Friday to accommodate holiday travelers.

Ledge on the southbound side of the highway will be removed in a separate phase. Millovitsch estimated work could possibly begin in the spring depending how things progress through the winter. He emphasized each phase depends on the one before it.

On that critical path is the replacement of the Route 161 overpass that will begin this winter. Once that’s done, crews will be able to start on what he described as the project’s single biggest safety improvement: the alignment of the highway itself.

“We are raising the highway on the south side of the bridge while lowering it on the north side to create a more gradual passage,” he said.

The work will get rid of the hills and valleys that currently make it hard for drivers to see ahead. He said the phased approach means drivers at some points will notice people driving next to them at different elevations. It also explains why the new off-ramp is about 8 feet higher than the existing highway, according to Millovitsch.

He said there won’t be any closures related to the bridge work on the highway during the day, when the contract specifies two lanes must remain open at all times. But traffic on the state road below can be stopped in daytime for up to 10 minutes.

He said he can’t guarantee all closures will happen at night even though that’s the preference. Ultimately, the decision depends on factors including how the work is progressing and when subcontractors are available.

The upheaval that can result from closures in the area was evident last week when the Exit 74 on- and off-ramps were shut down for two days for a last-minute paving project.

Millovitsch described the paving job as a stopgap measure to get through the next two years until Route 161 is scheduled to be overhauled. That’s when the road from Stop & Shop to True Value Home Center will be widened to accommodate four 11-foot travel lanes, 11-foot turning lanes, 5-foot shoulders and 5-foot concrete sidewalks on both sides.

Millovitsch said it was “a business decision” to interrupt traffic for two days in exchange for two years of safer conditions. He said conditions were marked by poor drainage, patching related to underground utility work and overall age.

“We just milled off two inches, put back two inches and established a crown on 161 in the center of the road,” he said. “So now all the water is hitting the road, running to the gutters and then going to catch basins.”

He acknowledged many people were caught off guard by the last-minute project that he said didn’t allow for “a lot of notice.”

“Unfortunately, we didn’t get the word out as early as we would have liked,” he said.

The project website, i-95eastlyme.com, now includes live video feed from multiple areas of the project recently updated to include Route 161.

“We encourage the locals to avoid traveling through here if possible to help our delays – and that way they’re not delayed – but at the same time we want them to stay in the area and keep visiting the businesses that are located on the job or right off the job.”

e.regan@theday.com