Date:
Thursday, April 14, 2005
Contact:
Chuck Ruhsenberger, Area Engineer, 360-759-1310
Janelle Ward, Public Information Officer, 360-905-2057
VANCOUVER - Weather permitting, a project to improve the I-5 interchange
at State Route 501 (West Pioneer Street) in Ridgefield is scheduled to
begin construction on Monday, April 18, announced the Washington State
Department of Transportation (WSDOT). WSDOT recently awarded the
construction contract for this project to Ostrander Rock and Construction
Company of Longview, Wash., who submitted the winning bid of
$1,207,759.88.
This project will:
Install new traffic signals on SR 501 at the northbound and southbound
I-5 on and off ramps.
Add right turn lanes to both northbound I-5 off ramps and the southbound
on ramp.
Add a left turn lane from westbound SR 501 onto 56th Place just west of
I-5.
Install median curbing on SR 501 on the east and west sides of I-5.
Construction will take place mainly during daylight hours, Mondays through
Thursdays and until 12 p.m. on Fridays. There will be no weekend or
holiday closures scheduled. During construction, motorists should expect
short duration single lane closures on SR 501 with flaggers and up to
20-minute delays. Occasional full and partial closures of the I-5 on an
off ramps also will be required. There will be advance notification of the
ramp closures. Occasional nighttime work will be necessary at some high
traffic locations in order to reduce impacts to motorists. Weather
permitting, construction is scheduled for completion in July 2005.
Advance warning signs will be placed ahead of the construction area on I-5
and SR 501, and motorists are asked to observe and adhere to the posted
speed limits when driving through the work zone. It's a fact that
motorists are more likely to be killed in a highway work zone accident
than a construction or maintenance employee. In Washington, 12 motorists
are killed for every WSDOT employee killed and 214 motorists are injured
for every WSDOT employee injured. It's also a fact that traffic law
violation fines are doubled inside work zones when workers are present (RCW
46.61.527).
For weekly updates on this and all other state construction-related
impacts in the region, please visit the WSDOT Southwest Region Weekly
Travel Advisory Web page:
www.wsdot.wa.gov/regions/southwest/Travel. It is updated every
Friday for the following week's impacts. For more information about this
project, please call the WSDOT Columbia River Gorge Area Engineering
Office toll-free at: 1-866-279-0730.
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