Date:  Wednesday, May 12, 2010

Contact:
Neal Uhlmeyer, Project Engineer, 360-412-3420
WSDOT Communications, 360-357-2789 or 360-507-1854

LAKEWOOD – Drivers heading south on I-5 near Lakewood this weekend should plan for long delays as WSDOT’s contractor, Penhall Company, moves all traffic onto the highway shoulder for concrete panel rehabilitation work starting Friday night, May 14, and continuing to Sunday morning, May 16.

This will be one of the two most difficult weekends for travelers through Tacoma while crews complete the $8.4 million I-5 Martin Way in Lacey to 48th Street in Tacoma concrete repair project that started in March.

“If you can avoid this section of southbound I-5 Saturday or delay your trip until Sunday afternoon, it’s in your best interest to do so,” said Region Administrator Kevin Dayton. “There are no alternate routes around this construction that can handle the more than 70,000 vehicles this section of I-5 typically sees on weekends. And the nature and location of this work basically reduces a four-lane interstate to a one-lane backcountry road.”

Motorists can expect double and triple-lane closures on southbound I-5 from 48th Street in Tacoma to Gravelly Lake Drive in Lakewood from 7 p.m. Friday, May 14 to 8 a.m. Sunday, May 16. The on-ramp from Bridgeport Way to southbound I-5 also closes during work hours.

Engineers expect backups to be at their height Saturday and encourage drivers to avoid the area from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m.

“Unlike past weekend closures for this rehabilitation project, traffic won’t have a chance to dissipate because – at best – only two lanes out of four on southbound I-5 will be open during the weekend,” Dayton said. “At the worst, and this will be the majority of this weekend’s extended closure, we’ll only have one southbound lane open.”

Crews will replace the concrete next to the Clover Creek Bridge in Lakewood. The amount of construction and its location means that the contractor will need to close three highway lanes to motorists through Sunday morning.

All travelers from Tacoma to Olympia and southbound drivers from Seattle, who might seek SR 167 to SR 512 as an alternate route, will also experience extensive delays as construction is also expected to cause significant backups on SR 512.

Motorists from the Olympic and Kitsap peninsulas traveling to destinations in the South Puget Sound should consider taking alternate routes such as SR 3 or US 101.

Drivers who can’t avoid traveling southbound I-5 during the upcoming weekend closure should prepare for lengthy backups as the five-mile backups seen during last weekend’s closure are expected to double, or even triple.

The pavement on I-5 through work zone that includes sections of Thurston and Pierce counties is more than 50 years old, double its expected 20-year design life. The Recovery Act funded I-5, Martin Way in Lacey to 48th Street in Tacoma project is replacing 295 concrete panels and installing more than 56,000 dowel bars to support the roadway on 25.5 miles of I-5 between Martin Way in Lacey and 48th Street in Tacoma to create a smoother driving surface.

Through last weekend, 77 percent of the 295 broken panels have been replaced and 25 percent of the 56,600 dowel bars have been installed since the project began early last month.

Drivers can know before they go by checking the flow maps and traffic cams found at www.wsdot.wa.gov/traffic/tacoma, calling 5-1-1.

This week’s entire current work schedule can be found on the region’s weekly impact report at www.wsdot.wa.gov/Regions/Olympic/Construction/ or drivers can stay informed about this project by visiting www.tacomatraffic.com.

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