Drivers who travel along North Roop Street should leave a little early today because workers will control vehicle traffic from Winnie Lane to Northridge Drive.
The controls will be in effect from 7 a.m.-4 p.m. and the same area could be either under controls or closed all together on Friday, according to the city.
What ultimately happens Friday "depends on how much work gets done," said John Benzing, the city's construction manager.
Today, Workers will be using a motorgrader, a machine with a big blade, to peel off rough asphalt applied nearly two weeks ago.
An attempt to microsurface the street didn't come out as smooth as expected. Microsurfacing is a cooler mixture of asphalt applied to high-traffic streets and freeways where fast applications are crucial. The procedure is also used to fill ruts and is preferred for application during times of extreme heat or cold.
The work was done by Sparks-based Sierra Nevada Construction, and was just one task included in an annual citywide street resurfacing contract worth about $780,000.
City Public Works inspects work by contractors after it's completed, but didn't accept this section of Roop. This new work is being done to correct the problem and create a smoother surface, Benzing said.
No other problems have been detected by city officials with road work done by Sierra on other local streets. That section of Roop was the only one where workers microsurfaced, he said.
Trying the microsurfacing was an attempt to find a lower-cost alternative to overlays that would also extend the life of the roads for five to seven years.
"We never have enough money for all roadwork we want to do," said Andrew Burnham, the city's public works director.
He expects future microsurfacing projects to come out better than this first try, he added.
• Contact reporter Terri Harber at tharber @nevadaappeal.com or 882-2111, ext. 215.