The state Department of Transportation is piggybacking a repaving project on top of a culvert replacement next week on state Route 73.

The DOT had already announced Wednesday it will completely close a half-mile stretch of Route 73, between state Route 9N (Spruce Hill) and the south end of Hulls Falls Road toward Keene Valley, from Tuesday to Thursday.

On Friday, the department announced it will also repave a 1.8-mile stretch of Route 73 well south of Keene Valley, between the U.S. Route 9 turnoff (colloquially known as “Malfunction Junction”) and the Round Pond trailhead south of Chapel Pond.

The paving project is projected to last from Monday to Friday, weather permitting. It will not close the two-lane highway completely but will allow alternating one-lane traffic controlled by flaggers.

Many fewer vehicles than normal will pass through that stretch of Route 73 Tuesday through Thursday because the detour for the culvert replacement will take traffic through Elizabethtown along Route 9 and 9N, bypassing Keene Valley entirely. DOT Capital Region spokesman Bryan Viggiani said that low traffic volume is a reason the repaving was scheduled for that time and place.

As usual, the DOT reminds motorists that fines are doubled for speeding in a work zone and urges them to slow down and drive responsibly.