A Weekly Summary of WSDOT News and Activities
Washington Jobs Now - Last of three Recovery Act projects to be delivered on I-5 in Cowlitz and Lewis counties
Federal stimulus funds are helping to improve I-5 between Kelso (Cowlitz Co.) and Centralia (Lewis Co.). |
Drivers navigating I-5 through Cowlitz and Lewis counties have seen more orange and black on the roadway during the past year than they might see at a San Francisco Giants baseball game – but luckily, they have also seen improvements to this 40-mile stretch of interstate.
Thanks in part to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, three projects to improve safety, enhance drivability and preserve pavement are being delivered to these counties to keep drivers safe and traffic moving.
The I-5, North Kelso to Harrison Avenue project is the final project in this three-part series and will repave and improve a six-mile gap between two recently completed projects on the I-5 corridor. The I-5 North Kelso to Castle Rock project completed in November of last year improved 14 miles of interstate and the I-5, Koontz to Harrison Avenue project completed in October improved eight miles. Over 20 miles of guardrail, lighting and signs will also be upgraded through this final project.
Crews continue work to install nearly 20,000 feet of new guardrail to meet current design standards throughout the project limits. In addition, work has begun on I-5 between Kelso and Castle Rock vicinities to retrofit over 1,000 concrete panels with epoxy coated dowel bars. Retrofitting concrete panels with dowel bars helps to prevent shifts in the panels resulting from heavy freight traffic and normal wear and tear on the roadway.
As the last of three Recovery Act projects to be delivered on I-5 between Kelso and Centralia, the project will complete paving and safety improvements to this 40-mile stretch of corridor and strengthen the roadway. By investing in our state’s infrastructure, we’re investing in our communities and the people that depend on these routes every day.
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Maintenance & Operations feature - WSDOT Going Orange for Work Zone Safety; 2010 Worker Memorial set for April 22
Kittitas County Public Works employees show their support for Work Zone Safety in downtown Ellensburg. Send in your Go Orange for Work Zone Safety photos. |
WSDOT joins groups across Washington and across the nation April 19 – 23 for National Work Zone Awareness Week. The culmination is the WSDOT Worker Memorial to honor fallen workers and remind everyone about the importance of work zone safety. The memorial is scheduled for 10 a.m. Thursday, April 22, at WSDOT headquarters in Olympia.
During the 2010 Worker Memorial, there will be a special tribute to WSDOT fallen worker Neal Richards (killed while clearing the roadway near Port Angeles Nov. 19, 2009), with a presentation to his family. His co-workers will unveil a plaque on wall of the Transportation Building (WSDOT headquarters) in Olympia.
To raise awareness about work zone safety and support roadway workers all over the state, WSDOT and its partners are Going Orange for Work Zone Safety.
As part of Go Orange for Work Zone Safety:
- The entire WSDOT Web site changes to orange Friday (April 16) for one week.
- WSDOT employees, dignitaries, celebrities, and citizens from around the state have also gone orange. You can see them on our Go Orange for Work Zone Safety Web site: www.wsdot.wa.gov/safety/brake/.
- All Washington residents are encouraged to participate by wearing something orange, and then submit their photos in support of work zone safety.
On Washington’s state and local roads, 46 drivers, passengers and roadway workers were killed and close to 4,000 injured in work zones from 2005-2009. Since 1950, 57 Washington State Department of Transportation employees have lost their lives in work zone-related activities.
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Update of projects under way
I-5 Seattle – The first section of Smarter Highways, a high-tech traffic management system, is beginning to take shape on I-5 in south Seattle. The new network of sensors and electronic signs will help move traffic more effectively. Crews are installing 95 electronic signs and drivers should plan for full nighttime closures on northbound I-5 between Boeing Access Road and I-90 over the next three weekends. Crews will close northbound I-5 between Boeing Access Road and I-90 at 11:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday nights: April 16 and 17, April 23 and 24, and April 30 and May 1. A signed detour will direct drivers to exit at Martin Luther King Way (exit 157) to Airport Way and back onto I-5 via Edgar Martinez Way/SR 519. Crews will reopen the roadway by 6 a.m. on Saturday and 8 a.m. on Sunday.
SR 503 Battle Ground - WSDOT and its contractor, Rotschy, Inc. of Yacolt will begin construction April 19 on a safety improvement project along SR 503. The $7.5 million SR 503, Lewisville Climbing Lanes project adds climbing lanes in both directions of SR 503 near Battle Ground to increase safety and reduce the severity of collisions and conflicts between slower traffic and large vehicles passing each other on the roadway. In addition, the project will resurface the intersection of SR 503 and Gabriel Road. Crews will also grind out existing pavement and lay new asphalt on the road’s surface at the intersection of SR 503 and Gabriel Road. Traffic signals, illumination and signage will also be upgraded throughout the project area. The project is scheduled for completion by the end of this year.
SR 510 Yelm - Getting around in Yelm during peak commute times will soon get easier with a new project on SR 510 in Yelm. City officials and local Legislators joined WSDOT and its contractor Scarsella Bros., Inc., at a groundbreaking event on April 12 for the $5.5 million, seven-month project. Crews will build a new section of roadway off SR 510 between Mud Run Road and Cullens Road and construct the area’s first roundabout. This project is the first of two phases and will help alleviate congestion and improve mobility through Yelm. Right-of-way acquisition and design efforts continue for the second phase of this project, which continues the bypass roadway from Cullens Road to SR 507 near Bald Hills Road. Motorists traveling on SR 510 won’t notice traffic impacts until near the end of construction. Project completion is scheduled for winter 2010.
SR 900 Issaquah - Crews opened two new lanes on SR 900 between SE 82nd Street and Newport Way on April 14. Project work added nearly one mile of new lanes in both direction of SR 900 to add extra capacity to this popular commuter route. Crews also installed a synchronized signal system to help keep traffic flowing smoothly for the approximately 16,000 drivers who use this road daily. Though the new lanes are open to traffic, crews will wait for warmer, drier weather to add the final layer of pavement and permanent striping. Crews are also finishing work on new traffic signals at Talus Drive and Newport Way. In addition, the project improves safety for bicyclists and pedestrians headed to and from the Issaquah Transit Center at Newport Way by adding a five-foot bicycle lane and a ten-foot raised sidewalk along southbound SR 900. Crews also replaced the culverts at Clay Pit Creek and the West Fork Tributary to Tibbett’s Creek. The new culverts will improve fish passage and protect against damage in future storms.
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Announcements
Governor Announces 2010 Commute Smart Awards;
winners promote economy, environment and innovation
Gov. Gregoire announced the 2010 Governor's Commute Smart Awards on April 13 in Olympia. |
Governor Chris Gregoire recognized the efforts of employers and communities that participate in the statewide Commute Trip Reduction program on April 13. She announced the winners of the 2010 Governor’s Commute Smart Awards at a ceremony hosted at the Governor’s Mansion in Olympia. The Governor’s Commute Smart Awards recognize communities, businesses, agencies and employee transportation coordinators.
This recognition event honors employers who are the foundation of the program, innovative communities that are driving the future of the program, and the ongoing contributions of employee transportation coordinators who help employees make better transportation choices that help them save money and benefit their communities. Approximately 530,000 people are employed at work sites that participate in commute trip reduction programs. This translates to 62 million fewer vehicle miles traveled annually and saves three million gallons of fuel and 27,490 metric tons of greenhouse gases.
This year’s awards recognize 46 recipients in eleven categories. The awards recognize the benefits – like better traffic flow and cleaner air - that are shared by all. For every $1 the state invests in these programs, businesses invest an additional $18, maximizing commute trip reduction programs for everyone in the state. By delivering innovative, comprehensive programs that address their employees’ transportation needs, these award winners serve as examples for the more than 1,000 work sites in the state who implement commute trip reduction programs.
Construction of new I-90 Port of Entry starts April 19
Work will get under way on a new Washington State Patrol Port of Entry facility on Interstate 90 at the Washington/Idaho border on April 19. This new facility will be built about one half mile west of the current port of entry. The new facility includes a new weigh station building and scales, a fully enclosed vehicle inspection building, and new “weigh in motion” scales on the Interstate 90 westbound lanes.
The weigh in motion system is a new addition to the port of entry. Trucks equipped with special transponders, and registered with the state, will be weighed by scales installed under the freeway pavement. If given the “green light” these trucks won’t have to slow down or stop at the stationary scales at the port building. This feature will help keep traffic moving more efficiently by reducing the number of slow moving trucks entering the freeway from the scale. Trucks without transponders or overweight trucks will be directed to exit to the weigh station. The relocation of the scale facility to the west also will remove the truck traffic from the Idaho Road interchange area.
Selland Construction of Wenatchee is the prime contractor on the job with a construction bid of $6,704,332. The work should take about 18 months to complete. WSDOT is managing construction of the weigh station facilities for the Washington State Patrol.
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April open houses and meetings
20, Tuesday, 11 a.m. - noon, Groundbreaking, I-82 Valley Mall Boulevard project - Union Gap: WSDOT is celebrating the start of construction of the I-82 Valley Mall Boulevard Interchange - Rebuild Interchange project. The Valley Mall Boulevard interchange will be reconfigured to provide better, more direct access to and from I-82, and access to N. Rudkin Rd. A frontage road serving trucking and commercial businesses will be realigned to provide improved access. Location: Near the interchange, in the parking lot south of Sea Galley, Union Gap.
22, Wednesday, 10 a.m. - noon, Work Zone Memorial - Olympia: WSDOT officials and employees, Washington State Patrol, and contractor representatives will come together to honor and remember WSDOT employees who have died in line of work. The event is part of Work Zone Safety Awareness week. Location: Transportation Building, 310 Maple Park Avenue SE, Olympia.
22, Thursday, 5 - 7 p.m., Corridor hearing and open house, Alaskan Way Viaduct and Seawall Replacement Program - Seattle (Pioneer Square): Join the Alaskan Way Viaduct and Seawall Replacement Program team for a corridor hearing and series of open houses. We want your input about our proposed change to SR 99 along the waterfront in downtown Seattle. Corridor hearing presentation will begin at 6 p.m. Location: Silver Cloud Inn – Stadium, Avenue One Ballroom, 1046 First Ave. S., Seattle.
Express Lane Archive
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