Cedar Rapids, Iowa (KCRG-TV9) -- Johnson Avenue Northwest in Cedar Rapids can be a busy road, especially during the morning and evening commutes.
On average, the city says they see about 6,000 cars on that road each day.
And right now, it's part of a 2-year road project known as the Paving for Progress project.
The city says they really wanted to fix the deteriorated road on Johnson Avenue NW and cut down on the number of crashes in the area.
Just last year the city recorded 14 crashes and in the last 10 years they've had over 100 crashes.
That's why eventually they'll be adding a roundabouts at the intersections at Johnson Avenue with Wiley Boulevard and Jacolyn Drive.
The road is currently closed between 4600 Johnson Avenue to Wiley Boulevard.
But a portion of Johnson just east of Jacolyn Drive is open for people to drive through to get to businesses in the area.
Crews are continuing to move east on Johnson Avenue where they are replacing worn-out pavement with new pavement.
The city received a half-million dollar grant to convert it from a four lane section to a three lane section with a left turn lane to help reduce the number of accidents.
"A lot of accidents that are attributed to four lane roadways, rear ends, left turning, people hitting people crossing, you know making a left turn, crossing T-bone accidents, those type of things are what we see a lot of," says Doug Wilson, the City of Cedar Paving for Progress Manager.
The best alternative route or detours to take is Edgewood Road and 16th Avenue and Jacolyn Drive to get around this area.
The total cost of the project is 5 million dollars and while it won't be completed until next year, the city does expect to re-open Johnson Avenue and Wiley Blvd intersection sometime in August.