Date:
Wednesday, August 11, 2010
Contact:
Seema Javeri, WSDOT Project Engineer, 425-889-0244
Steve Peer, WSDOT Communications, 425-301-2023
BELLEVUE – Crews successfully placed the 10th and final 100-ton girder this morning for the new NE 12th Street Bridge over I-405 in Bellevue and reopened all lanes of southbound I-405 to traffic. It’s the first milestone for a construction project that will relieve area traffic congestion in 2012.
The 185-foot long girders are composed of highly-compressed, reinforced concrete and form the structural backbone of the new bridge.
To view a time-lapse video of cranes lifting girders into place, please visit www.youtube.com/watch?v=AE4tWDDEwd0.
On a typical weekday, the NE 12th Street Bridge carries more than 22,000 vehicles and is a vital crossing for Bellevue medical and business districts. When complete in 2012, the new bridge will be taller, wider, have two lanes in each direction, and have a bicycle/pedestrian lane separated from traffic.
“We’re one step closer to providing a better commute for eastside drivers, but we’ve got a long way to go before we can get drivers on this new section of bridge,” said Project Engineer Seema Javeri. “This is a big milestone for us and we’re excited to have completed this critical work.”
This work is part of a larger $107.5 million project known as the I-405 Bellevue Braids that will improve congestion between I-405 and SR 520 by separating vehicles entering and exiting north bound I-405 between NE Eighth Street and SR 520 in Bellevue. It’s funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act and the 2005 Transportation Partnership Account gas tax.
To keep traffic moving during construction, the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) is building the NE 12th Street Bridge in stages. First, crews will pave and prepare the new section south of the existing bridge. Crews will then shift traffic to the new section and tear down the existing bridge. After the existing bridge is torn down, crews will build a north section and connect the two together.
For more information, please visit www.wsdot.wa.gov/projects/i405/ne8thtosr520/ .
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