Date:
Friday, June 29, 2007
Contact:
Jamie Holter, WSDOT Communications, (206) 440-4472 (Seattle)
New this week
SR 9, Snohomish County
Contractors are preparing for a full, four-week closure of Lauck Road/108th Street SE just west of SR 9 starting in early July. Detours will be in place. Drivers are asked to plan ahead. www.wsdot.wa.gov/Projects/SR9/108thNE_Lauck/
I-405, South Bellevue
Drivers in the South Bellevue area will notice heavy equipment moving into the area as crews begin work on July 9 to widen I-405 between 112th Avenue to SE 8th Street.
www.wsdot.wa.gov/Projects/i405/112thAvetoSE8th/
I-5, Federal Way
Crews will close all lanes of southbound I-5 at S. 320th Street between midnight and 5 a.m. Monday night to install in-road traffic sensors.
SR 167, Renton
Crews will begin striping northbound SR 167 with HOV diamonds the week of July 9. WSP patrol will NOT enforce the HOV lanes on SR 167 between 15th Street NW and 15th Street SW until all the striping is finished and the signs are in place at the end of July. www.wsdot.wa.gov/Projects/SR167/HOV15thSW_15thNW/
July 4th holiday
WSDOT crews and contractors will stop work on all state highways at noon on Tuesday, July 3 and not resume work until noon, Thursday, July 5 to stay out of the way of drives as they travel to and from their holiday destinations.
WSDOT will keep the I-5 express lanes open in the northbound direction until 4 a.m. to accommodate traffic leaving the downtown July 4 festivities. The lanes will operate in the southbound direction at 5 a.m. Thursday. www.wsdot.wa.gov/News/2007/06/28_july407travel.htm
I-5, downtown Seattle
There are more than a dozen high-traffic events scheduled in the downtown area over the next week. Check the bottom of our weekly construction update report to see which events may affect your plans. www.wsdot.wa.gov/Northwest/King/Construction/
Work continues this week
US 2, West of Stevens Pass
Monday through Thursday, drivers can expect lane shifts where crews have begun an eight mile paving project from Deception Creek to the Stevens Pass summit. www.wsdot.wa.gov/Projects/US2/WStevensPaving/
SR 520, Bellevue
Crews continue to close westbound SR 520 between 76th Avenue NE and Bellevue Way from 7 p.m. to 5 a.m. as crews complete prep work necessary for laying down quieter pavement. www.wsdot.wa.gov/Projects/SR520/EastsideQuiet/
SR 202, Fall City to North Bend
Crews have finished paving 4.5 miles of SR 202 between Fall City and North Bend and are preparing to complete the final striping work and guard-post installation. Drivers can expect daytime single lane closures from 7 a.m. to 2 p.m. for up to two weeks. http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/Projects/SR202/SR203NorthBendWay/
What’s next?
I-5, Seattle
WSDOT maintenance crews will close lanes on I-5 on the Ship Canal bridge to perform annual maintenance and fill potholes either July 14 and 15 or July 21 and 22. This work is noisy and residents in the Eastlake community will hear crews as early as 5 a.m.
SR 520 Floating Bridge
WSDOT bridge and maintenance crews will close the SR 520 floating bridge the weekend of July 14 and 15 for annual maintenance work and lay down a test section of quieter pavement. www.wsdot.wa.gov/traffic/bridges/sr520/
New Tacoma Narrows Bridge
Save the date! Three weeks from now, the new Tacoma Narrows Bridge hosts a public celebration. Everyone is invited to see the bridge five-years in the making. Mark your calendars for July 15. www.wsdot.wa.gov/projects/sr16narrowsbridge/opening/default.cfm
I-5, downtown Seattle
The clock is ticking on major I-5 construction in downtown Seattle. WSDOT contractors will close multiple lanes on northbound I-5 between I-90 and Spokane Street around the clock between August 10 – 29. Crews have already begun preconstruction efforts. WSDOT is asking drivers to start preparing now: www.wsdot.wa.gov/Projects/I5/SpokaneStreetBridgeRepair/
Did you know?
SR 99, Alaskan Way Viaduct
Newly released inspection results show the Viaduct has settled another ¼ inch. Work to stabilize the structure begins this fall. www.wsdot.wa.gov/projects/viaduct
SR 104, Hood Canal Bridge
The east-half replacement and west-half retrofit project is more than 50 percent complete, with the first cycle of 10 new anchors successfully submerged at the bottom of Hood Canal in May. Crews have already set four of the ten anchors in the second set of anchors completed June 20. http://www.hoodcanalbridge.com/
What can drivers do?
We may sound like a broken record, but it is important that we remind drivers that there are many ways for them to get information and avoid traffic delays. Drivers should plan ahead, check our real-time traffic map and pay attention to the signs along the way. If you can, consider alternate routes or adjusting your driving schedule to avoid the worst traffic.
Know before you go: visit WSDOT’s Web site
WSDOT offers several ways to get up-to-date traffic and construction information from our Web site at http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/ before you leave your home or office:
- Traffic map - The color-coded map shows where traffic is heavy and light so you can alter your commute accordingly
- Travel times - Real-time point-to-point travel times
- Traffic cameras - take a look at traffic conditions on a growing number of highway locations throughout the Puget Sound region
- E-mail alerts - Sign up for one of several e-mail alert lists. You’ll get advance notice of upcoming construction closures delivered right to your inbox
- Construction update report - comprehensive, seven-day advance listing of lane, ramp and road closures
- Project pages -Find your highway and see the long and short-term construction plans
Know on the road
- 511 - This driver information phone line provides real-time traffic, incident and closure information
- Overhead and roadside electronic signs - Emergency and incident alerts and, in some Seattle-area locations during rush hours, point-to-point travel times
- Highway advisory radio - Yellow signs with flashing lights alert drivers to tune into radio frequencies airing construction updates
- Work zones - watch for construction zone signs, barrels, barriers and cones. Slow down and stay alert when driving through construction zones, not just for the construction workers, but also for you and your passengers. Far more motorists are injured in work zone collisions than construction workers.
WSDOT and our contractors are doing our part to stay out of your way and keep traffic moving. We do most of our work at night or on weekends when there are fewer drivers on the highway. We make every effort to limit lane closures and only close lanes when we absolutely have to. We also strive to get in, complete our work quickly, and get out, giving the roads back to drivers as quickly as possible.
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