Date:
Monday, August 13, 2007
Contact:
WSDOT Communications, 206-440-4788 (Seattle)
WSDOT Public Hotline, 206-440-4704 (Seattle)
SEATTLE –
Ongoing Construction
Crews working to repave northbound Interstate 5 between I-90 and Spokane Street are still on schedule and are planning to set the bar higher. Tonight, they hope to increase their paving rate from 15 cubic feet per hour to 20 cubic feet per hour. At this rate they hope to shift traffic and begin stage 3 by Thursday.
“We are making good time,” said Project Engineer Paul Johnson. “We’re working hard but we still have a lot of work to finish. We hope to know more by early Tuesday morning.”
Tonight crews are paving over 1,500 feet of paving just south of the I-90 interchange and expect to finish by 2 a.m. Tuesday morning. Once this section of paving is done, they’ll have a better sense of whether they can complete stage 2 by Wednesday night. Keep track of construction work as it happens at www.wsdot.wa.gov/Projects/I5/SpokaneStreetBridgeRepair/traffic.htm.
Traffic Volumes
Traffic volumes remained light with minimal backups through the afternoon commute despite a Seattle Mariner's game at Safeco Field, several stalled vehicles, and one fender bender in the construction zone. Traffic speeds through the work zone averaged 40 mph at 5:30 p.m., which is typically the peak of the afternoon commute.
Drivers continued to heed WSDOT’s advice and played a crucial role in minimizing congestion. However, WSDOT engineers worry Monday’s light traffic volumes could inspire drivers to get behind the wheel for the Tuesday morning commute.
“Drivers did their part to minimize congestion on Monday,” said Johnson. “We hope they continue to do their part because we still have up to 16 days of construction to go.”
Drivers should continue taking alternate routes, carpooling, using transit and avoiding or rescheduling trips to keep traffic moving.
Today traffic engineers noticed that some drivers didn’t know that they can reconnect to northbound I-5 from the right lane, which becomes the collector-distributor lane at the north end of the construction zone. The collector-distributor provides access to Dearborn St, James St and Madison St, as well as northbound I-5. Some drivers have been darting from the collector-distributor across the gore point at the last minute to rejoin mainline traffic. Tonight, crews will install additional signs to let drivers know that they can reconnect with northbound I-5 from the collector-distributor.
During the 19-day around-the-clock closure, crews working for Concrete Barrier Inc. will break apart old concrete surrounding 34 old, worn-out expansion joints, install new expansion joints and repave 1.13 miles of northbound I-5 between Spokane St and I-90.
For project details, resources available to get drivers through these closures, and suggestions for alternate routes, please visit the project Web site at: www.wsdot.wa.gov/Projects/I5/SpokaneStreetBridgeRepair.
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