Date:  Thursday, August 19, 2010

Contact: Dustin Terpening, Communications, 360-757-5997 (Burlington)
Chris Damitio, Project Engineer, 360-788-7403 (Bellingham)

BELLINGHAM – The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) recently hired a contractor to improve I-5 on-ramps in Bellingham and make it easier for drivers to safely merge with traffic and ease congestion through the city.

WSDOT awarded the contract to Vetch Construction LLC of Camano Island for their low bid of $4.4 million – $1.5 million less than WSDOT’s estimate for construction. This project is primarily funded by the 2005 Transportation Partnership Account gas tax passed by the Legislature.

“There’s a lot of congestion at the ramps when traffic merges onto the interstate, which causes slowdowns and collisions,” said planning and operations manager Todd Carlson. “Improving and lengthening the ramps will help keep traffic moving more smoothly and reduce collisions.”

Crews will improve and extend the northbound Samish Way on-ramp, northbound Iowa Street on-ramp, southbound Sunset Drive on-ramp and the southbound Lakeway Drive on-ramp.

Construction could begin as early as this September, weather permitting, and will wrap up in summer 2011. Crews will close I-5 lanes and ramps at night during the work. Construction and lane closure information will be available on the project website and distributed in weekly e-mail updates.

Carlson said many of the needed improvements on I-5 in Bellingham are costly and will require hundreds of millions of dollars to construct. Less expensive improvements, such as lengthening ramps without completely rebuilding interchanges, provide travelers with immediate benefits. They also serve as building blocks for future improvements, as funding becomes available.

Engineers used collision data and cost estimates to select specific ramp improvements that will maximize benefits for the downtown corridor with the funds available.

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