A Weekly Summary of WSDOT News and Activities
Washington Jobs Now - Preferred alternative announced for SR 520 bridge project
Maintenance & Operations feature - SR 123, Cayuse Pass opened to traffic
Update of projects under way
Announcements
May meetings and events
Washington Jobs Now - Preferred alternative announced for SR 520 bridge project
An artist's rendering of the new SR 520 floating bridge looking southeast. |
WSDOT has marked a major milestone in its effort to replace the aging and vulnerable State Route 520 floating bridge. After 13 years of thorough analysis and input from thousands of people, the state has announced a preferred alternative for the I-5 to Medina: Bridge Replacement and HOV Project.
Major safety, transit and environmental improvements are in store for the SR 520 corridor from I-5 in Seattle across Lake Washington to Medina. The SR 520 preferred alternative takes key steps to get ready for future light rail, help manage traffic in the Arboretum and transform the future highway with a landscaped lid and median for a parkway experience.
The new floating bridge and highway will have six lanes, including two general-purpose lanes and a new transit/HOV lane in each direction. Adding transit/HOV lanes makes travel in the corridor faster and more reliable for buses and carpools and supports regional plans for completing the HOV system to reduce the number of single-occupancy vehicles.
Details are on our website, including images of what a new, larger landscaped lid at Montlake Boulevard would look like. The preferred SR 520 alternative directly responds to input we received from the public, the City of Seattle, the University of Washington and environmental regulatory agencies. Work continues on design refinements for the Montlake area with those groups as well as transit agencies.
Highlights include:
Room for future light rail: The bridge deck will accommodate future light rail trains and the west end of the floating bridge will have room for trains to leave the corridor and head to the University of Washington area. Pontoons could be added to the floating bridge in the future to carry the weight of the trains.
Less traffic in the Arboretum: The project removes the ramps that currently carry traffic directly to Lake Washington Boulevard and the Washington Park Arboretum. Westbound off-ramps instead will carry buses and general purpose traffic to 24th Avenue E. and continue on to Montlake Boulevard.
Buses and a lid at Montlake: New direct-access ramps will carry buses to a new landscaped park lid at the Montlake Boulevard interchange. The open space will extend from Montlake Boulevard into the Arboretum.
Parkway on Portage Bay: A slimmed-down Portage Bay Bridge will be built as a 45-mph landscaped parkway with a 6-foot-wide planted median. The 105-foot-wide bridge is narrower than the 154 feet previously planned in the 2006 draft environmental impact statement.
Identifying a preferred design keeps us on track for opening a new bridge to traffic in 2014.
top
Maintenance & Operations feature - SR 123, Cayuse Pass opened to traffic
Crews use a blower to clear snow, eight feet deep, off of Cayuse Pass. This photo was taken on April 1 about two miles below the summit. |
After a month of clearing work, WSDOT's four-member maintenance team from the Greenwater shop opened SR 123 Cayuse Pass at noon on Friday, April 30.
Initially, the crew encountered about eight feet of snow on the roadway leading up to the summit and 12-feet at the summit. WSDOT hoped to open the pass on April 15, but snowstorms in early April brought several additional feet of snow to the pass. The late-season storms dumped up to four feet of snow on sections that had already been cleared, forcing the crew to go back and clear again.
With Cayuse Pass open, the crew will begin working its way up the west side of SR 410 Chinook Pass. Another crew is working on clearing Chinook Pass from the east side. Crews hope to have Chinook Pass open by Friday, May 28.
Cayuse Pass connects to Chinook Pass and White Pass at the east end of Mount Rainier National Park. The Cayuse Pass summit is at the junction of highways 410 and 123. The 4,675-foot-high pass is about five miles west of the Chinook Pass summit.
Chinook and Cayuse passes are closed each winter due to high avalanche risk. Cayuse Pass has numerous slide areas that pose significant danger to travelers, WSDOT maintenance crews and park staff.
top
Update of projects under way
US 2 Monroe - A $10 million investment to reduce crashes on US 2 between Monroe and Gold Bar is one step closer to construction. WSDOT has awarded Vetch Construction, of Camano Island, WA a contract to add two-way left-turn lanes and modify an intersection on US 2 to help reduce the risk of serious collisions. Starting as early as June, drivers will see crews at work on US 2, adding two-way left-turn lanes between 245th Avenue SE and 153rd Place SE east of Monroe and extend existing left-turn lanes in Sultan and Gold Bar. Two-way left-turns lanes take turning drivers out of the lane of heavy traffic. They will also help reduce the risk of rear-end and t-bone collisions related to drivers turning into and out of driveways and cross streets. Crews will also close the western connection of Sultan-Startup Road and US 2 east of Sultan and build a cul-de-sac at the end of the road. Closing the connection to US 2 will reduce the risk of serious collisions at this location. Drivers can expect single-lane closures during construction. Crews expect to wrap up work on the project this fall.
I-5/I-90 Seattle - Crews working for WSDOT opened the new I-5/I-90 off-ramp to the S. Atlantic Street/Edgar Martinez Drive S. overpass near Safeco Field on April 24. The ramp opening is the second major accomplishment for WSDOT’s SR 519 Intermodal Access project in less than two weeks. The week prior, WSDOT opened the S. Royal Brougham Way bridge and gave drivers, bicyclists and pedestrians a safe and convenient way to cross above the railroad tracks between the stadiums. The new off-ramp provides a faster, more direct and reliable route for trucks moving to and from the Port of Seattle, and for drivers heading to the waterfront and events at Seattle’s stadiums. The new off-ramp and S. Royal Brougham Way bridge reduces the potential for collisions on SR 519 for drivers, pedestrians and bicyclists, and moves freight, daily commuters, sports fans and ferry travelers faster through the corridor. Opening the new bridge and ramp this spring meets WSDOT’s goal of completing the SR 519 project before major construction begins this summer to replace the southern mile of the Alaskan Way Viaduct.
Vancouver Rail Bypass - The $11.6 million Vancouver Rail Bypass and West 39th Street bridge project reached a milestone on April 20 as crews start setting girders on the 740-foot bridge over the Vancouver rail yard. Crews will work to set a total of 30 concrete and steel girders, ranging in length from 100 to 178 feet each. After the girders are secured, crews will install mats made of reinforcing steel and start pouring concrete to form the bridge deck. Once complete, the new West 39th Street bridge will take cars, bicyclists and pedestrians over the Vancouver rail yard, where trains are expected to occupy the railroad tracks an average of 20 hours each day by the year 2020. Moving traffic up and over the tracks increases safety and mobility for all traffic in the rail yard. The bridge is expected to open to traffic in summer 2011, and the entire project is scheduled for completion in spring 2012.
top
Announcements
Testing begins for Smarter Highways signs
Drivers headed northbound on I-5 in south Seattle may have noticed small dots of light on newly installed electronic signs. Traffic engineers started on April 26 to test the high-tech signs that will be a part of the Smarter Highways system. WSDOT traffic engineers are beginning a 20-day testing period that will run 24-hours a day. During the testing they will send messages to confirm the connection between WSDOT’s traffic management center in Shoreline and the electronic signs. The test messages will create a small dot on each of the signs. Drivers do not need to take any action when they see the test dots.
Traffic engineers will conduct several phases of sign testing in the next few months as they prepare to activate Smarter Highways this summer. The signs will alert drivers to reduce their speed or change lanes when there are collisions or backups on the road.
WSDOT Ferries Division peak season begins May 1
The peak season begins May 1 at the WSDOT Ferries Division with an additional 25 percent surcharge applied to full fare vehicle/driver tickets. The peak season surcharge does not affect passenger fares or frequent user multi-ride fares, except on the Anacortes/San Juan routes.
On the Anacortes/San Juan routes passenger single fares are increased 20 percent during the peak season and vehicle/driver fares go up 35 percent. These routes also have day-of-the-week pricing, making travel less expensive from Sunday through Tuesday. Peak season ferry fares will be in effect Saturday, May 1 through Saturday, October 9.
Summer parking rates at Anacortes will also go into effect on May 1.
These summer parking rates will be in effect through Sept. 30. For more information about parking, or to arrange for long-term parking, contact Diamond Parking at 1-800-828-4197.
top
May meetings and events
3, Monday, Noon - 1 p.m., Community meeting, Washington State Ferries - Port Townsend: WSDOT's Ferries Division (WSF) is holding a series of meetings in ferry communities to share information and discuss current ferry issues. Location: Elks Lodge, 555 Otto Street, Port Townsend.
3, Monday, 6:30 - 8:30 p.m. , Community meeting, Washington State Ferries - Whidbey Island: WSDOT's Ferries Division (WSF) is holding a series of meetings in ferry communities to share information and discuss current ferry issues. Location: Trinity Lutheran Church
18341 State Route 525, Freeland.
4, Tuesday, 6:30 - 8:30 p.m., Community meeting, Washington State Ferries - Bainbridge Island: WSDOT's Ferries Division (WSF) is holding a series of meetings in ferry communities to share information and discuss current ferry issues. Location: 402 Brien Drive, Bainbridge Island.
5, Wednesday, 6:30 - 8:30 p.m., Community meeting, Washington State Ferries - Vashon Island: WSDOT's Ferries Division (WSF) is holding a series of meetings in ferry communities to share information and discuss current ferry issues. Location: McMurray Middle School, Multi-purpose room, 9329 Cemetery Road, Vashon Island.
6, Tuesday, 11:35 a.m. - 3:45 p.m., Community meeting, Washington State Ferries - San Juan Islands (Inter-island ferry): WSDOT's Ferries Division (WSF) is holding a series of meetings in ferry communities to share information and discuss current ferry issues. Location: Aboard the inter-island ferry - depart Friday Harbor 11:35 a.m.; depart Orcas 12:25 p.m.; depart Shaw 12:40 p.m.; depart Lopez 1 p.m.
Express Lane Archive
top