SUMMIT CO., Ohio — The Ohio Department of Transportation said a lane widening project along Interstate 77 in Summit County is ahead of schedule and expected to wrap up this fall — nearly two years earlier than originally planned.
The work between Everett Road and Ghent Road will be complete in approximately two months, according to ODOT.
Contractors began working on I-77 in the summer of 2025 to add a third lane in each direction along the interstate. The project originally had a completion date of summer 2027.
ODOT said it could now be finished by the end of October or early November of this year. The agency said contractors moved quickly and finished several parts of the project ahead of schedule.
Crews still need to complete the final resurfacing and lay the last of the asphalt.
The construction zone has been a high-accident area since work began. Based on public records, accidents in the work zone increased significantly after construction started. Bath Township Police told News 5's Caitlin Hunt in February that lane changes in the work zone increased response times as officers navigated through construction.
ODOT said the removal of the construction zone and the addition of the third lane should help address those safety concerns.
"When you have a lot of congestion, what you typically find is traffic slows down, and sometimes there are crashes and different things like that, and then secondary crashes on top of it," Justin Chesnic, a spokesperson with ODOT District Four, said. "By opening up that third lane, traffic should flow a lot smoother through there, and that should result in a much safer commute."
Once the project is complete, there will be three lanes on I-77 from Canton to Cleveland. ODOT said this also marks the end of major construction along the interstate. Any future work will be for maintenance and repairs.
Until the project is finished, ODOT asks drivers to obey posted speed limits and watch for lane shifts to protect both drivers and construction workers.
