Road crews along state Route 7 in Jefferson County are using a new and unique way to keep drivers safe as they work.

Beaver Excavating Co. – which was brought in by the Ohio Department of Transportation – is using shipping containers filled with limestone as a protective barrier while crews work on a stretch of the highway in Rayland.

Project manager Adam Lytton said it's a new technique that will save money, allow crews to work in all types of weather, protect drivers from rocks that will be blasted to push the hillside back and prevent future landslides.


"In construction, time is money. The longer it takes to build something, ultimately the more money it's going to cost. Being that we can work regardless of the weather conditions, it will be built that much quicker. Ultimately, saving money," Lytton said.

Blasting work is expected to start in December, at which time crews will shut down that area of Route 7 for 15 minutes once a day.

Lytton said the project has been on schedule and should be complete by fall 2013.