CINCINNATI – The City of Cincinnati Department of Transportation & Engineering (DOTE) on Monday, Jan. 24, will begin a project to widen Auburn Avenue and reconfigure a five-way intersection adjacent to The Christ Hospital and William Howard Taft National Historic Site in Mt. Auburn.

The $5.6 million project between Dorchester and Gilman avenues will take approximately two years to complete.

It includes adding a fifth lane to Auburn Avenue between Gilman and Bodmann avenues and reconfiguring the intersection of Auburn, Dorchester and Sycamore Street. Other improvements include reconstruction of retaining walls, stormwater inlets and traffic signals at the intersections of Earnshaw Avenue, Mason Street and Huntington Place.

Crews also will install new concrete curbs, sidewalks and signage.

The contractor is Cincinnati-based Prus Construction.

Prus will spend this year into spring 2023 widening the roadway from Gilman to Bodmann, performing utility upgrades and reconstructing five retaining walls in the same stretch.

Crews will begin work south of Bodmann in fall 2022. This part of the project will include reconfiguration of the five-way intersection of Auburn, Dorchester and Sycamore, as well as utility upgrades and reconstruction of three additional retaining walls.

Local access to businesses and residences will be maintained during the project, including one lane of through traffic in each direction. However, commuters should expect congestion and allow for extra time due to slow traffic. Crews typically will work between 7:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. Monday through Friday and occasionally on weekends or in the evenings. No work is allowed before 7:00 a.m.

The majority of the project is funded with federal and state grants.