Chewed-up section of Beltline near Crabtree Valley to be repaved

One of Raleigh’s largest thoroughfares will undergo a facelift this spring.

The North Carolina Department of Transportation plans to resurface a five-mile section of the Raleigh Beltline between Lake Boone Trail and Wake Forest Road. That includes a chewed-up stretch near Crabtree Valley Mall.

The work is scheduled to begin in April. Drivers can expect lane closures.

The state in August awarded a $26 million contract to the Fred Smith Co. to complete the work.

The transportation department has received complaints about that stretch of highway, which was last repaved in 2012. The road’s top layer is designed to aid water runoff and prevent vehicles from hydroplaning. As the road ages and deteriorates, though, parts of it are breaking loose.

The road’s rapid deterioration prompted the department to expedite the project by three years. The plan also calls for shifting road surface designs to a pavement that adheres better to the underlying surface, DOT spokesman Aaron Moody said.

The new layer of road, an “ultra-thin bonded wearing course,” is already being used on Capital Boulevard, Wade Avenue and Peace Street in Raleigh. It’s also being installed as part of the ongoing Interstate 40 improvements between Wade and U.S. 1, Moody said.