'Slurry Seal' Construction To Begin On Finley Avenue In Basking Ridge

BASKING RIDGE, NJ — Somerset County's efficient and low-cost "slurry seal" road improvement process is scheduled to begin on North and South Finley Avenue.

The roadwork will occur on the roadways from Route 202 in Bernardsville to Cross Road on Thursday, July 13, Friday, July 14 and Monday, July 17.

The working hours are scheduled from 8 p.m. to 5:30 a.m. Drivers should expect road closures and detours during the working hours.

This schedule is weather dependent and subject to change.

The Somerset County Commissioners authorized funding of $1.26 million to overlay almost nine miles of roads throughout Somerset County, including in Basking Ridge. Read More: 'Slurry Seal' Road Repair To Be Applied To Basking Ridge Road

"Somerset County is responsible for ensuring that hundreds of miles of local and regional roads are safe and maintained, and that means making improvements to a portion of our roadways each year," said Somerset County Commissioner Melonie Marano, liaison to Public Works. "We work hard to keep the costs and impact on traffic down as much as possible when performing road work. Over the past few years, the use of the ‘slurry seal’ process has accomplished both goals even beyond our expectations."

The slurry seal process is used to extend the life of pavement on roads that need maintenance but do not yet require a full replacement. Eventually, all roads require milling and paving, but the use of slurry seal reduces long-term expenses by cost-effectively expanding the time between milling and paving projects by five years or more. As a result, the County decreases the overall cost of maintaining its 250 miles of roadway while keeping or improving roadway conditions and motorist safety.

Additionally, the slurry seal process takes significantly less time than milling and paving, reducing the impact on local motorists as they travel to shopping, work, and recreation. The process does require temporary road closures, but such closures are scheduled overnight to reduce the impact on commutes and daytime travel.

Have a news tip? Email alexis.tarrazi@patch.com.