IRVINE : Road Repair Work Begins Near Airport

Major road improvement projects have begun on MacArthur Boulevard and Main Street, snarling traffic around John Wayne Airport.

Work on the multimillion-dollar projects will continue through next year, but officials said they are taking measures to lessen the impact on motorists.

Workers are widening the road, building median islands and rehabilitating the pavement on MacArthur Boulevard, said Tom Mazzola, Irvine’s principal project engineer.

The portion of MacArthur Boulevard affected by the construction runs south of the San Diego Freeway in front of the airport.

Officials have scheduled the work so that it won’t have a major impact on airport users during the busy holiday season, Mazzola said.

“We are phasing in the work,” he said. “We are doing a portion of the roadway at any one time to minimize the impact on the motoring public.”

The project is expected to cost about $2 million. Eventually, the city plans to build a second overpass across the San Diego Freeway that should increase the traffic flow along MacArthur Boulevard.

Construction on Main Street is also occurring in phases, Mazzola said.

Workers plan to build traffic median islands as well as to increase the number of traffic lanes along Main Street between Sunflower Avenue in Costa Mesa and the San Diego Creek in Irvine.

The project will cost about $5 million.