Work continues to make more than $1.5 million worth of repairs needed to re-illuminate Tulsa highways.
City councilors formed a task force earlier this year to keep tabs on the efforts. Streets and Stormwater Director Terry Ball said all lights along the Gilcrease Expressway should be back on within two weeks, even though work has slowed from copper thefts and other mishaps.
"Some of the storm damage that did occur from the storm back in July, and then some pole knock-downs," Ball said. "We had some vehicles that have run into some of our light poles that we put back up, and now we're having to put them back up again."
After the Gilcrease Expressway is done, work will start along Highway 169 from Admiral to 91st Street by Sep. 1. Then it’s on to I-244 — which engineers are drawing up plans for — and I-44, with the Broken Arrow Expressway coming last.
"The BA was picked to be last just because we have to cooperate with the railroad, and that one's going to be the hardest one and potentially the most expensive one because of the lights and the railroad and what's going to be done there," Ball said.
While the lights are being repaired, the city is also converting them to metered usage and replacing stolen copper wiring with less valuable aluminum to deter thefts.
