Date:
Friday, October 13, 2006
Contact:
Dave Chesson, (360) 757-5970
WSDOT Construction Update for Highway 20
Edition 6, October 5, 2006
In this issue:
• Crews paving between Troxell Road and Cornet Bay Road
• Utility work continues between Sidney Street and Scenic Heights Road
• Drivers and residents overwhelmingly vote to close highway on weekends
• Scenic Highways grant funding includes Highway 20
Crews paving between Troxell Road and Cornet Bay Road
Crews working on Highway 20 north of Oak Harbor will pave the freshly lowered section of highway beginning today and into next week. This work should not cause delays, however heavier than normal truck traffic during the day can be expected as trucks bring in asphalt. Rain could delay this work, but we anticipate having the roadway paved, striped and open to the public by the end of October. They completed cutting down the hill last month, removing over 27,500 tons of earth to lower the roadway by nine feet. Crews will come back next spring and add a final layer of asphalt to the roadway and the project will be complete.
Utility work continues between Sidney Street and Scenic Heights Road
The city of Oak Harbor will wrap up water line work near Eagle Vista Avenue this week. Next week, utility crews will install three utility poles south of Monroe Landing on either Wednesday or Thursday. Crews will close the westbound lane for twenty minutes as they set each pole. Flaggers will alternate traffic through the work zone. No other delays are expected next week. We anticipate all of the utility pole relocation work to be completed by the end of November. Verizon and Comcast will then move phone and cable service to the new poles.
Drivers and residents overwhelmingly vote to close highway on weekends
Last month we asked drivers and residents near Sidney Street and Scenic Heights Road to help us to determine whether to close Highway 20 south of Oak Harbor on weekends or weekdays for two 58 hour periods. We sent out 3,750 questionnaires and posed the question to this list serve. We received 753 responses and the response was overwhelmingly (68%) in support of weekend closures. We used this information as part of our decision making process to close the highway on weekends next year. We want to thank everyone that took the time to voice their opinion.
Scenic Highways grant funding includes Highway 20
The Federal Highway Administration has selected eleven improvement projects from across Washington to receive approximately $685,000 in grants from the National Scenic Byways Program. Two of the projects receiving funding are on Highway 20:
▪ Whidbey Island Scenic Byway – $98,100 to create the scenic byway logo and the design, fabrication and placement of three gateway and several logo signs within the scenic byway.
▪ North Cascades Scenic Byway – $100,000 for safety improvements at the intersection of the North Cascades Scenic Highway (SR 20) and Helmick Road.
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