Date:
Wednesday, May 07, 2008
Contact:
John McNutt, WSDOT Project Engineer, (360) 570-6752
Jamie Swift, WSDOT Communications, (360) 357-2703
OLYMPIA – Save money on gas and avoid speeding tickets by slowing down to 60 mph the next two years on I-5 south of Olympia.
Starting Monday, May 12, the speed limit drops from 70 mph to 60 mph on a 12-mile stretch of I-5 between the Lewis/Thurston county border and Tumwater (milepost 85.73 to 97.33), where WSDOT and contractor Scarsella Brothers, Inc. will be widening the freeway and building new bridges through fall 2010.
A groundbreaking event for the I-5 Grand Mound to Maytown project is set for 9:30 a.m., May 14 at the Scatter Creek rest area, milepost 90 off northbound I-5. Scheduled speakers include Transportation Secretary Paula Hammond and WSDOT Olympic Region Administrator Kevin Dayton.
Scaling back the speed limit improves safety for motorists traveling through the work zone and the construction crews working next to traffic.
The Grand Mound to Maytown project adds a third lane in the northbound and southbound directions between US 12 and SR 121. This $88 million “nickel” project also realigns a segment of I-5 to provide a more gradual curve.
These upgrades relieve congestion and improve safety and freight mobility on the corridor. About 60,000 vehicles travel the Grand Mound-to-Maytown stretch of I-5 each day and about 20 percent of those vehicles are freight trucks.
For project information online: www.wsdot.wa.gov/Projects/I5/GrandMoundtoMaytown/
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