A Weekly Summary of WSDOT News and Activities
Project of the Week - Summer progress for Columbia River Crossing
The existing 1917 and 1958 bridges carry traffic across the Columbia River between Oregon and Washington. |
Columbia River Crossing (CRC) is a bridge, transit and highway improvement project of the Washington and Oregon departments of transportation. The project is designed to reduce congestion and improve safety on a five-mile segment of Interstate 5 (I-5) between Vancouver and Portland by:
- adding high capacity transit across the Columbia River
- building merging and weaving lanes between interchanges
- rebuilding six interchanges
- enhancing the bicycle and pedestrian path between the two cities
- making the I-5 crossing less vulnerable to earthquakes
Cost estimates for the project range from $3.1 to $4.2 billion, a portion of which would likely be financed by bridge tolls.
On May 2, 2008, the project reached a significant milestone and released its Draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS). The document describes the potential environmental and community effects of the five project alternatives under consideration. The Draft EIS release started a 60-day public comment period, which ends July 1.
The project’s 39-member Task Force advisory committee met for the last time on June 24, to recommend which alternative best meets the community’s needs and addresses congestion, mobility and safety problems. The group recommended replacing the aging Interstate bridges and adding light rail between Portland and Vancouver.
In the next steps, the CRC’s local sponsoring agencies will formally select a Locally Preferred Alternative (LPA) in July. The agencies will review the findings in the Draft EIS, the Task Force recommendation, and input received during the public comment period to make a decision. The LPA will include three key project elements: bridge type (replacement or supplemental bridge), high capacity transit mode (bus rapid transit or light rail) and transit terminus. Once a LPA is selected, project sponsors, including Oregon and Washington DOTs, will refine the preferred alternative to decide the number of highway lanes over the river, bridge design, transit design and alignment, pedestrian and bicycle facility design, and to develop plans for mitigation, sustainability, tolling and financing.
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Maintenance and Operations feature - Unique highway is a great training ground for crews
WSDOT Maintenance Techs, perfect their grading skills on SR 165 in Pierce County, one of the last graveled highways in the state. |
Each year WSDOT grades State Route 165, one of the last remaining gravel highways in Washington. The annual project took a new shape this year after Terry Barnett, WSDOT Olympic Region Maintenance trainer, thought it would serve as an excellent opportunity to train maintenance technicians from across the region on how to operate graders.
Road-graders are used in the WSDOT maintenance program for many different activities including grading and shaping roadway shoulders, applying hot asphalt, snow plowing and for removal of mud and slide debris.
Trainees have been out on the eight-mile stretch of SR 165 since June 9 grading out the past winter's potholes and ruts, applying new rock and then flattening the roadway to provide a smoother ride for drivers.
Don Clotfelter, Region Maintenance Manager, sees the new program, which wraps-up July 2, as being extremely valuable. “To be a proficient grader operator you must have ample time in the seat pulling the many levers, gaining a feel and an eye for what you and the machine can do,” Clotfelter said. “The past few weeks spent on the Mowich Road allowed our Maint. Tech III’s both machine and gravel stick time.”
This remote stretch of highway, which ends at Mount Rainier National Park in east Pierce County and averages less than 300 vehicles daily, is a perfect site for such an activity.
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Update of Projects Under Way
US 97 Omak - Crews began installing advance warning beacons on US 97 in Omak on June 26. Seven rear-end collisions in the last three years at the only traffic signal on US 97 between East Wenatchee and the Canadian border prompted this project to install “Prepare to Stop When Flashing” beacons on US 97 at the intersection with SR 215. Wal-Mart and Home Depot contributed $7,500 in addition to a state grant to fund this $21,000 WSDOT safety improvement. Work should be complete by the end of the month.
I-405 Renton - WSDOT crews are working through the summer to enhance and re-establish more than 130 acres of wetlands in the Renton area to address the effects of development and transportation projects. This work is part of the Springbrook Creek wetland and habitat mitigation bank project a partnership between our agency and the city of Renton. The site provides prime wildlife habitat in a densely urban area for a variety of species including: red-tailed hawks, herons, songbirds and trout. This month WSDOT crews continue to excavate portions of the site, plant native plants and will begin to breach berms to Springbrook Creek. Crews are also constructing a boardwalk through a portion of the site that will be completed this fall.
SR 169 Black Diamond - WSDOT hopes to start emergency repair work for an unstable slope along SR 169 near Black Diamond on Monday, June 30. Crews will completely close the Dan Evans Bridge to rebuild the section of the northbound roadway and guardrail that has been undermined by a slow moving landslide. Until repairs begin, the bridge is open to alternating one-way traffic. WSDOT engineers expect the bridge to be fully closed for up to 14 days. If the emergency repairs are successful, the bridge will be reopened to traffic until a long-term fix can be constructed.
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Announcements
Final Hood Canal Bridge lift spans arrive in Seattle
The Hood Canal Bridge Project got a huge lift on June 25– two, actually. The bridge’s second and third lift span sections arrived in Seattle’s Elliot Bay about 4 a.m., completing a 358-mile, 46-hour trip that began early Monday morning in Vancouver, WA. They were secured to the Hood Canal Bridge’s new east-half draw span about 7:30 a.m. at Todd Pacific Shipyards (TPS) and are being readied for installation.
Foss Tugboats, which delivered the first lift span to TPS June 9, made sure the two 104-foot-long, 75-foot-wide sections arrived safely. WSDOT and contractor Kiewit General (K-G) will place them in the draw span once crews jack – or elevate – the 210-ton sections. Installation work is scheduled to conclude this Friday. WSDOT and K-G can then begin finalizing columns and installing the hydraulics needed to raise and lower the lift spans as the draw span moves in and out of the u-shaped assembly. Crews hope to have the lift span ready to test in September. The arrival of all three lift spans moves the bridge project one step closer to the May-June 2009 float-in. The entire project is now 77 percent complete.
WSDOT Ferries Division assists in rescue after schooner runs aground in the San Juan Islands
Two vessels operated by WSDOT Ferries Division were diverted from service on their San Juan Islands routes on June 23 to assist a vessel that ran aground near Shaw Island. The Sealth and the Evergreen State both were asked by the U.S. Coast Guard to remain on the scene to assist in rescuing passengers. Both vessels returned to service just after 1:00 p.m.
The 133-foot Adventuress ran aground at approximately noon in Wasp Pass, between Orcas and Shaw Islands. The Sealth was in the process of loading vehicles and passengers at the Orcas Island terminal for the 12:05 p.m. departure when the U.S. Coast Guard asked the ferry’s crew to come to the assistance of the grounded vessel. The ferry Evergreen State was also asked to assist as it was heading for a stop at Orcas Island with a full load of vehicles and passengers. Both ferries launched rescue boats to assist the grounded sailing vessel. Five passengers evacuated from the Adventuress were taken onto the Sealth.
Each year, ferry crews participate in more than 10,000 drills as a part of a rigorous training regimen. WSDOT vessel crews swiftly respond to numerous rescues throughout Puget Sound. “Our crew’s regular training really paid off,” said David Moseley, WSDOT assistant secretary. “The vessel crews were able to launch a rescue boat quickly, demonstrating the maritime expertise and professionalism that all our fleet employees show every day.”
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Gray Notebook Highlight - Tacoma Narrows Bridge Tolling
A special report in the March 2008 Gray Notebook focuses on the tolling operations for the Tacoma Narrows Bridge. It indicates toll revenue collections are on target with original revenue projections. An average of $80,330 was collected in electronic and cash tolls each day for the first quarter of 2008. A total of $21 million has been collected in tolls since the bridge opened on July 16, 2007. Approximately 60 percent of every toll collected is allocated to make the bond payments used to construct the bridge. The remaining 40 percent is allocated for the toll operations contract. This includes WSDOT oversight; maintenance and preservation; enforcement; and insurance. It is estimated that the bridge debt service will be paid off in 2030. More details on this topic and other key issues can be found in the Gray Notebook at: www.wsdot.wa.gov/accountability.
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June and July meetings
June
30, Monday, 6:30 - 9 p.m., Ferry Advisory Committee Meeting - Bremerton: WSDOT's Ferry Division is holding a public meeting to share information regarding the recent legislative ferry financing study and to hear customer's comments related to this ferry route. Location: Norm Dicks Government Center, 345 6th Street, Suite 100, Bremerton.
July
1, Tuesday, 6:30 - 9 p.m., Ferry Advisory Committee Meeting - Port Orchard: WSDOT's Ferry Division is holding a public meeting to share information regarding the recent legislative ferry financing study and to hear customer's comments related to this ferry route. Location: Long Lake Bob Oke Community Center, 5448 Long Lake Road SE, Port Orchard.
For more details, please visit the WSDOT Calendar of Events.
Express Lane Archive
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