Weekend motorists on the heavily traveled Patterson Road corridor in Riverbank were forced to dodge a bit of disturbance at the Roselle Avenue/Railroad Avenue intersection near downtown.

A series of thick metal plates covered up excavation areas on both Patterson and Roselle, making turns in and out of traffic a bit bumpy.

Work had begun last week, with the weekend plates left behind as evidence of what might be to come there. Not only were there plates covering excavation in the roadway, but there was a large stack of them in the parking lot of a former restaurant across the street, along with some waiting construction equipment, in preparation for work continuing this week.

The restaurant is on the corner of Railroad Avenue, directly across from where Roselle Avenue ends at Patterson. There is some hope that the intersection may be realigned to correct its offset condition. Directly across Railroad is the parking lot of a warehouse installation, so the alignment may be able to be improved.

The excavation is in preparation for installation of signal lights at the intersection, expected to include a tie-in with the crossing barricade signals at the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railroad crossing nearby, on Patterson Road.

The project has long been on the to-do list of the Riverbank Public Works Department, and should improve congestion a bit on the east-west route taken by a lot of rush hour travelers.

In addition to the many plates on the ground, weekday drivers will have to be aware of the above ground workers in the area during the day.