Project of the Week - Carpoolers will be cruising on I-5 in Everett
Transit riders, carpoolers and vanpoolers are enjoying new HOV lanes between Seattle and Everett. |
Neither rain, nor snow, nor sleet, nor hail will stop I-5 Everett crews from reaching their goal to have all 10 miles of new carpool lanes open by the end of April. They have already added 4.6 miles of southbound I-5 HOV lane, extending it from SR 526 to Marine View Drive. Very soon, they’ll open the final segment of six new miles of northbound I-5 HOV lane that will stretch from SR 526 to US 2. Transit, carpoolers and vanpoolers headed north on I-5 will cruise in a dedicated lane from Seattle to Everett. Carpoolers headed southbound are already enjoying an HOV lane that starts at Marine View Drive and continues to the express lane entrance at Northgate. Afternoon commuters on the six new miles of northbound HOV lane will save eight minutes as they head into Everett. Morning commuters on the 4.6 new miles of southbound HOV lane will save five minutes as they head out of Everett.
I-5 Everett crews are racing forward to have all lanes and ramps open to traffic by June. However, drivers can expect minor work to continue through summer:
May
• open new HOV off-ramp from northbound I-5 to Broadway Avenue
• open new HOV on-ramp from Broadway Avenue to southbound I-5
• open new on-ramp from 41st Street to southbound I-5
June - August
• new traffic cameras and ramp meters
• permanent striping
• replace aging expansion joints between 41st Street and Everett Avenue
The $263.4 million project is scheduled to be complete by this summer.
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Maintenance and Operation Feature - WSDOT honors fallen workers during Work Zone Awareness week
Bell Williams, the wife of Sam Williams who was killed in a work zone collision, expresses her gratitude to WSDOT for remembering those who have made the ultimate sacrifice. Secretary Hammond and State Maintenance Engineer Chris Christopher look on. |
WSDOT employees and families of fallen workers participated in a flag-lowering ceremony on Friday, April 25, in Olympia. The ceremony honored WSDOT workers killed or injured in work zones. At 8:30 a.m. flags were lowered to half staff by Transportation Secretary Paula Hammond and Chief Engineer Jerry Lenzi. After the flag ceremony, speakers representing WSDOT, construction contractors, and Washington State Patrol addressed family members and employees. A video tribute to our fallen workers played on the new video wall and information about roadway safety was available.
Each year close to 2,000 traffic incidents occur in state highway work zones. While the high-profile incidents are decreasing, those smaller incidents that block traffic and cause minor injuries keep going up. Between 2001 and 2006, work zone collisions increased by close to 60 percent, from only 686 in 2001 to 1,097 in 2006. The top two reasons for work zone crashes are speeding and inattentive driving. And, one of the top collision types in work zones is the rear-end collision during daylight hours.
WSDOT's
Give 'em a Brake program may focus on worker safety and how drivers should watch out for workers, but the majority of work zone fatalities and injuries are drivers and passengers (non-workers) - accounting for 99% of the total in 2006. Injuries to driver and passenger injuries in work zones have increased by close to 30 percent since 2001, while there was only one flagger/roadway worker killed on a state highway from 2001 to 2006.
As the weather warms and more workers are out on Washington's roadways, the incidents increase each month - with more incidents in August than any other month.
Tips for Driving in a Work Zone:
- Observe the speed limit and don’t do anything except drive while you’re in the work zone.
- Don’t use your cell phone,
- Don’t eat or drink
- Don’t change CD’s or radio stations.
- Don’t tailgate! Leave plenty of room between you and the vehicle in front of you.
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Updates of projects under way
US 101 Hoquiam - The final days of the US 101 Simpson Avenue Bridge 10-week closure have arrived. Crews are focusing on testing the functionality of the draw bridge. Part of the testing requires opening and closing the drawspan numerous times throughout the week. Updated traffic lights and loud speakers that warn drivers of bridge openings are now operational. Crews also got a chance to see the new traffic gates at work. The gates block motorists from continuing onto the bridge when the drawspan is raised.
SR 104 Hood Canal Bridge - Crews at Oregon Iron Works (OIW) completed construction of the Hood Canal Bridge’s new west transition span. The span – or truss – is one of two that will connect the floating bridge’s pontoons to SR 104 approach spans in Kitsap and Jefferson counties. Vancouver-based OIW started assembling the 270-foot-long, 70-foot-wide, 35-foot-tall trusses in 2007. The new transition span is large enough to hold a wingless Boeing 727 and is 30 feet wider than the existing west half of the bridge. It will match the new east half, which is currently being constructed, and improve safety by providing more room for drivers and bicyclists. The truss work is part of the SR 104 Hood Canal Bridge retrofit and replacement project. The bridge will close for six weeks during May-June 2009 to allow WSDOT and contractors from Kiewit-General to remove and replace its eastern half.
SR 290 Spokane - Contractor crews will begin work on Monday, April 28th on State Route 290 (Trent Road) where it intersects with Starr Road near Newman Lake. Several improvements will be made at this intersection, located about 13 miles east of Spokane. A right turn lane from westbound SR 290 onto northbound Starr Road will be added with curbing and gutters. In addition, the illumination system will be upgraded. The added right-turn lane should reduce the potential for westbound rear end collisions. The project should be completed by mid June.
I-405 South Bellevue - Late-night drivers should be prepared for delays starting April 28 when crews begin major work on a new southbound I-405 bridge over I-90. The work will require a number of weeknight closures of I-90 at I-405, as well as lane closures and rolling slowdowns on I-405, plus numerous ramp closures at the I-405/I-90 interchange through early May. The closures will keep drivers safe and give crews the room that they need to set bridge girders for the new bridge as part of the I-405 South Bellevue Widening Project.
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Announcements
Final preparations underway for HOT lanes opening
Road crews are nearing completion of double striping on SR 167 to begin operating high occupancy toll (HOT) lanes on Saturday, May 3. If the weather cooperates, striping could be completed as early as this Saturday (April 26). As soon as the second solid stripe is down, it will be illegal to cross the double white lines that separate HOT lanes from the general purpose lanes.
The SR 167 HOT Lanes Pilot Project marks Washington State’s first use of variable tolling as a tool for improving traffic flow. It offers solo drivers the new choice of a faster, more reliable commute in the carpool lane by paying an electronic toll with a Good To Go! transponder; there are no toll booths. The price of the toll will increase and decrease with the level of traffic in the HOT lane to keep the lane free-flowing virtually all the time. Carpools, buses, vanpools and motorcycles will use the HOT lane toll free.
Solo drivers who want to use the HOT lanes need to open a Good To Go! account and install a transponder on their windshield. Learn how to open an account on the Good To Go! Web site at www.wsdot.wa.gov/goodtogo. Carpoolers with transponders in their vehicles should start using the metal shield to disable the transponder when driving in the HOT lanes. The metal shields are available for $3.50 each from the Good To Go! customer service centers. Drivers who never carpool do not need a shield.
More changes coming for WSDOT's Ferries Division
WSDOT Ferries Division Assistant Secretary David Moseley announced on March 21 the resignation of his second in command, Traci Brewer-Rogstad. Ms. Brewer-Rogstad rose through the ranks at the ferry system and has served the past two years as Deputy Director and Chief of Staff. “Traci has been a real super-star at the ferry system during her tenure,” noted Moseley, “and she has helped me immensely during my first few months on the job. Traci is the kind of leader who sets a standard by which we all hold ourselves to, and she will be missed.”
As Deputy Director, Traci Brewer-Rogstad has had overall responsibility for maintaining and ensuring a safe and reliable level of service for the nation’s largest ferry system. Other positions she held at ferries since she first began in 1997 are: Director of Operations; Assistant Director of Operations; Regional Manager; and Area Terminal Manager.
WSDOT Ferries Division Peak Season Begins May 1
On Thursday, May 1, the peak season officially begins at WSDOT Ferries Division with an additional 25 percent surcharge applied generally to full fare vehicle/driver tickets. On most routes, 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 than Wednesday through Saturday. Summer parking rates at Anacortes will also go into effect on May 1.
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Gray Notebook Highlight - Pedestrian and Bicyle Safety
Pedestrian fatalities make up a large portion of all traffic-related deaths that occur within urban areas. Over 70 percent of pedestrian traffic fatalities occurred in urban areas, approximately 38 percent on state highways or Interstate highways. As a comparison, pedestrian traffic fatalities account for approximately 22 percent of all traffic fatalities occurring in urban areas versus five percent of all traffic fatalities occurring in rural areas. Similar to pedestrian fatal collisions, over 60 percent of fatal bicycle crashes occur in urban areas. For cyclists, 35 percent of collisions occurred while crossing roadways and another nearly 30 percent occurred while riding with traffic. In 2005, the legislature included $74 million to support pedestrian and bicycle safety projects. The Pedestrian and Bicycle Safety Grants were established to address the nearly 400 statewide fatal and injury collisions each year. To date, the legislature has funded nearly 100 pedestrian and bicycle safety and safe routes to school projects totalling $35 million. 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:
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.
28, Monday, 5:30 - 7:30 p.m., Project overview, South Downtown Projects Preview - Seattle: Join WSDOT, King County and the City of Seattle at a South Downtown Projects Preview. Attendees will have the opportunity to speak with project directors and engineers about upcoming work near Pioneer Square and the stadiums. These important safety projects in the south downtown area will help us meet our goal of taking down the viaduct in 2012. For more information, visit www.wsdot.wa.gov/projects/viaduct. Location: Pyramid Restaurant, 1201 First Avenue South, Seattle.
For more details, please visit the WSDOT Calendar of Events.
Weekly Report Archive
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