Project of the Week - WSDOT Officially Kicks Off the 2008 Construction Season in Puget Sound
Crews are building piers for a new southbound I-405 bridge over I-90 in Seattle. This site will host a construction kick-off event on Monday, April 21. |
WSDOT is kicking off its Puget Sound construction season kick with an event highlighting one of two major construction projects designed to add capacity to
I-405 through the Bellevue/Renton area. The bridge over I-90 will add three new lanes, two general purpose and one HOV, to southbound I-405 traffic by the end of the year. These added lanes will provide much needed congestion relief for drivers who make that trip daily.
We’re working on far more than just I-405. Thanks to the Legislature’s 2003 and 2005 funding packages, we are delivering more than 150 projects just this year.
• King County - 77 projects under construction for $367 million
• Pierce County - 21 projects for $44 million
• Snohomish County - 28 projects for $77 million
• Skagit, Island and Whatcom counties - 26 projects under construction totaling more than $121 million
The men and women who maintain and improve Washington's more than 7,000 miles of state highway ask you to slow down and pay extra attention to road construction signs this summer. Traffic fines are double in work zones. Speeding or inattentive driving in work zones could result in fines of up to $700 and a 60-day license suspension. Extra signs will be placed along the highways this summer to warn you to slow down and Give 'em a Brake in work zones.
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Maintenance and Operations feature - Laying down the line for driver safety; WSDOT crews kick off striping season
Maintenance workers demonstrate how a striping truck lays down reflective paint stripes during a striping season kickoff event in Seattle. |
Imagine a road on a moonless, dark and rainy night without the striped lines to guide you. Sounds pretty scary, doesn’t it? Not to worry. WSDOT striping season is underway and crews are in gear to re-stripe more than 4,500 miles on dozens of highways around the Puget Sound area between the King/Pierce county line and the U.S./Canadian border. The fresh coat of reflective paint that crews apply during spring, summer and fall months will make it easier for drivers to see the road when winter rains return.
On April 16th, local morning traffic reporters Jenni Hogan (KOMO 4) and Adam Gehrke (KCPQ 13) helped kick-off the start of
striping season by testing their road-striping skills. Under the watchful eye of striping operator, Tarik Albershushi, they climbed into a WSDOT striping truck and used a live video feed of the road to gauge where to point the paint gun and lay down the stripe. Both reporters said it was a lot more difficult to paint a straight line than they thought it would be. Luckily, our seasoned striping crew have mastered line-striping.
It is up to drivers to make sure the reflective lines they paint stay on the ground. Driving over fresh stripes or changing lanes when following a striping crew not only splatters paint onto vehicles, it also removes the reflectivity of the stripe. Drivers can protect their car from damage and help WSDOT crews by recognizing striping crews and avoiding lane changes on freshly painted lines. Remember to give striping crews plenty of room and watch for the “wet paint” signs on Puget Sound highways. Drivers who cross wet paint when "wet paint" warning signs are present won’t be eligible for reimbursement of any paint damage through the WSDOT claims process.
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Update of projects under way
US 2 Goldbar / SR 92 Granit Falls - Crews began work on State Route (SR) 92 near Granite Falls and on US 2 between Gold Bar and Skykomish to improve roadside safety. This summer, crews are removing potentially dangerous objects, like stumps and boulders, from the side of the road and installing over a mile of guardrail on the two roads. This work will reduce the risk of serious run-off-the-road collisions on US 2 and SR 92. Between 2003 and 2007, there were 130 collisions involving fixed objects on this section of US 2.
I-5 Everett - Crews opened a new northbound I-5 HOV lane in Everett between Broadway Avenue and US 2 Friday morning, April 18. The northbound I-5 carpool lane is the latest segment to open of the more than 10 new miles included in the project. When all of the segments are complete, northbound I-5 carpoolers will enjoy a continuous HOV lane from downtown Seattle to US 2. Crews have already opened more than four miles of southbound HOV lane. Crews will open the northbound I-5 carpool lane in segments through next week until they complete all six miles. They will restripe the north portion of the carpool lane first and, as dry weather allows, work their way toward SR 526 until the new lane meets the existing northbound HOV lane at SR 526.
I-90 Spokane - Work is under way to bring guardrail up to current standards on the I-90 bridges at Lindeke Street and Latah Creek. Crews are adding new steel guardrail supported by new posts along the curb. Work on the Lindeke Street is complete. On the I-90, Latah Creek Bridge, drivers should expect lane restrictions between the hours of 7:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m. The legal speed limit remains 60 mph, however it has been observed that some westbound heavy trucks are exceeding that speed to “make a run” at climbing the Sunset Hill. WSDOT reminds drivers there are numerous workers along the bridge rails on I-90 at night, just inches from high-speed traffic.
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Announcements
I-5 tow-away zone stretches south
Because vehicles on freeway shoulders create dangerous situations for drivers and emergency responders, the tow-away zone, or area in which vehicles will be towed immediately, has been extended. It now stretches along I-5 from the Canadian border to nearly the Pierce/Thurston county border. WSDOT crews recently finished installing new red and white “No Parking, Tow Away Zone” signs on I-5 from the Pierce/King County line to Port of Tacoma Road and from SR 512 to Mounts Road. Previously, the tow away zone in Pierce County existed only between Port of Tacoma Road and SR 512. Vehicles parked on the shoulders of I-5 cause about 20 collisions a year in Pierce County and as many as 500 each year statewide.
SR 16 on-ramp in Tacoma sheds HOV designation
The new Narrows Bridge and additional capacity on SR 16 have traffic moving so smoothly that a decade-long HOV-only designation at the Jackson Avenue on-ramp to westbound SR 16 is no longer necessary. As of April 21 all vehicles can use the on-ramp. WSDOT’s decision to remove the HOV-only designation was made in coordination with the Tacoma City Council.
WSDOT implemented the afternoon peak-hour restriction in January 1997, at the request of the City Council, to alleviate backups that overflowed into this neighborhood just east of the Narrows. It was not uncommon for hundreds of cars to backup at the ramp and block local residents from pulling out of their driveways.
Making the ramp exclusive to carpoolers during the afternoon commute cured the problem, as solo drivers in north Tacoma stopped flocking to the last ramp before the bridge as a way to circumvent the then-congested SR 16. But now that the new bridge is open, and additional lanes and ramps have freeway traffic moving efficiently, the justification to maintain the HOV designation no longer exists.
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Gray Notebook Highlight - Recordable Injuries and Illnesses
WSDOT continues to make worker safety a priority and recognizes there is always room for improvement. We have set a goal to reduce OSHA-recordable injuries and illnesses among WSDOT employees by 50 percent from fiscal year (FY) 2006. The 2006 baseline is 466 injuries and our target for the end of FY 2008 is to reduce that number to 231 injuries. During the second quarter of FY 2008, WSDOT employees experienced 109 OSHA-recordable injuries and illnesses. This is more than double the number sustained in the first quarter and 16 more than the same quarter last year. After a review of the injury reports, most appear to have been preventable. In response, WSDOT implemented an aggressive safety awareness program that includes greater communication, pre-activity safety plans, more field visits by safety personnel, and assisting employees in identifying and correcting hazards in the work they do. More details on this topic and other key issues can be found in the December 2007 Gray Notebook at: www.wsdot.wa.gov/accountability.
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April open houses, meetings and events
22 Tuesday, 4 - 7 p.m., Open house, SR 14 Camas-Washougal Widening - Camas: WSDOT's project team will hold an open house to introduce design changes for the SR 14 widening project between Camas and Washougal. Location: Camas Police Department, Community Room, Camas.
22, Tuesday, 5 - 6:30 p.m., Citizen Advisory Committee meeting, Tacoma Narrows Bridge - Gig Harbor: The Tacoma Narrows Bridge Citizen Advisory Committee will hold a meeting to review current traffic data and revenue data. They will also hear about recent actions of the State Transportation Commission regarding toll setting. Meetings are open to the public. Persons wishing to comment or submit questions to the committee may do so online at: http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/Operations/Tolling/TNBTolling/CitizenAdvisoryCommittee Location: Gig Harbor Civic Center, 3510 Grandview Street, Gig Harbor.
22, Tuesday, 6:30 - 8 p.m., Public hearing, State Bicycle Facilities and Pedestrian Walkways Plan - Vancouver: WSDOT is holding a series of public hearings prior to finalizing an update of the state bicycle and pedestrian plan. Individuals are invited to hear a short presentation by WSDOT staff and provide comments about the plan. Location: WSDOT Southwest Region Office, 11018 NE 51st Circle, Vancouver.
23, Wednesday, 6:30 - 8 p.m., Public hearing, State Bicycle Facilities and Pedestrian Walkways Plan - Ellensburg: WSDOT is holding a series of public hearings prior to finalizing an update of the state bicycle and pedestrian plan. Individuals are invited to hear a short presentation by WSDOT staff and provide comments about the plan. Location: Hal Holmes Center, 209 N. Ruby Street, Ellensburg.
24, Thursday, 4 - 7 p.m., Stakeholder Advisory Committee meeting, Alaskan Way Viaduct - Seattle: The Washington State, King County, and Seattle departments of transportation formed the Stakeholder Advisory Committee as a way to engage key interest groups, listen to ideas, and conduct a transparent public involvement process for the central waterfront project. Meetings are open to the public. Location: Puget Sound Regional Council boardroom, 1011 Western Ave. # 500, Seattle.
24, Thursday, 7 - 9 p.m., Public hearing, State Bicycle Facilities and Pedestrian Walkways Plan - Spokane: WSDOT is holding a series of public hearings prior to finalizing an update of the state bicycle and pedestrian plan. Individuals are invited to hear a short presentation by WSDOT staff and provide comments about the plan. Location: West Central Community Center, 1603 N. Belt Street, Spokane.
25, Friday, 4 - 6 p.m., Public hearing, State Bicycle Facilities and Pedestrian Walkways Plan - Seattle: WSDOT is holding a series of public hearings prior to finalizing an update of the state bicycle and pedestrian plan. Individuals are invited to hear a short presentation by WSDOT staff and provide comments about the plan. Location: REI - Downtown Seattle, 222 Yale Avenue N., Seattle.
26, Saturday, 11 a.m. - 1 p.m., Community Celebration, Totem Lake Freeway Station - Kirkland: Sound Transit, the City of Kirkland and WSDOT invite the community to celebrate the new Totem Lake freeway station, overpass and access ramps. The event will feature entertainment, food samples from local businesses. Participants can also learn more about other projects under way in the community. RSVP to: events@soundtransit.org Location: Kingsgate Park and Ride lot, 13001 116th Ave. NE, Kirkland.
For more details, please visit the WSDOT Calendar of Events.
Weekly Report Archive
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