CARRABASSETT VALLEY, Maine ? Maine Department of Transportation construction crews are set to begin temporary repairs to Route 27 tomorrow morning (August 31) in order to transport construction equipment to the site of the closed bridges.
Washouts created by the extreme flooding of the Carrabassett River along Route 27 in the vicinity of the ?S? turns in Carrabassett Valley require MaineDOT to repair sections of the road in order to move construction equipment to the bridge sites. Currently, travel is limited to one-way, alternating traffic regulated by temporary signal lights. Motorists may experience delays due to the construction.
MaineDOT expects to have construction equipment and crews in place tomorrow afternoon (August 30) at the bridge sites in order to begin removing the debris of the washed-out bridges located near the Sugarloaf Access Road.
Route 27 in Carrabassett Valley is currently closed to through traffic as two bridges on either side of the Sugarloaf Access Road were washed out by flood waters. There currently is temporary access to Sugarloaf through a series of private roads. There is no through traffic on Route 27 in Carrabassett Valley, and a detour has been posted.
From Kingfield, the detour involves taking Route 142 from Kingfield to Phillips, Route 4 from Phillips to Rangeley, and Route 16 from Rangeley to Stratton. This detour route is approximately 34 miles longer than traveling the 22 miles from Kingfield to Stratton along Route 27.
The detour to Stratton from Farmington includes staying on Route 4 from Farmington to Rangeley, then travelling Route 16 from Rangeley to Stratton. That route is 56 miles long, 15 miles longer than traveling the 41 miles along Route 27 from Farmington to Stratton.