Intel’s latest “Extra-Large Super Load” moves through Waverly, Ohio
Intel’s latest “Extra-Large Super Load” is transported through Waverly, Ohio. The “Cold Box” is used at the New Albany plant to separate air into gases.
Commuters in Licking County can expect traffic delays this weekend as the newest “Super Load” truck travels from Adams County to the Intel plant in New Albany.
The Ohio Department of Transportation announced last week that the 16th large truckload of equipment for Intel – a so-called “superload” – will leave Adams County Thursday morning for a three-day trip to central Ohio.
The load will travel through Pike and Ross counties on Thursday before traveling through Pickaway and Franklin counties on Friday. It is scheduled to depart Franklin County around 6:30 a.m. Saturday. It will use roads in Etna Township and Pataskala and arrive in New Albany at an unspecified time.
This load is approximately 19 feet tall, 16 feet wide, and 200 feet long. It weighs nearly 400,000 pounds. ODOT and Ohio State Highway Patrol use rolling roadblocks to intentionally slow or stop traffic so the load can safely travel along its planned route.
ODOT anticipates no detours or road closures will be necessary for travel this week.
“It’s really hard to say when it’s going to be in (Licking County) because it’s moving pretty slowly,” said ODOT spokeswoman Morgan Eibel. “It just depends on traffic.”
The load is one of more than two dozen that ODOT is transporting to the Intel site. The transport began in March, warning drivers of the delays and detours the load could cause.
Eibel could not say exactly when all the loads would be delivered, but said ODOT will deliver more loads next year.
Last week, however, ODOT finished moving the project’s larger “superloads,” Eibel said. These loads, which are longer and heavier, have impacted traffic more because of their size than other smaller loads, like this week’s, she said.
For safety reasons, ODOT has avoided moving any loads at night. They also aren’t moving them exclusively on weekends because moving a load could take months rather than weeks, ODOT said.
The agency plans to post updates about this week’s ride on social media, and commuters can sign up to receive charging updates on ODOT’s website.
Watch: Intel’s ‘Super-Load’ drives through Licking County
A “superload” to Intel turns from Ohio 310 onto US 40 in Licking County on Monday, June 24, 2024.
Advocate reporter Josué Perez can be reached at [email protected].
