Date:  Friday, September 10, 2010

Contact: Steve Pierce, WSDOT Communications Director, 360-705-7076
Meagan McFadden, WSDOT Communications, 509-577-1618

OLYMPIA – The Washington State Department of Transportation’s (WSDOT) emergency response following the Nile Valley landslide has been selected to compete for the Best Transportation Project in the country. WSDOT restored access for hundreds of residents and businesses after a massive landslide in 2009 destroyed SR 410 west of Yakima. The effort is one of 10 finalists competing in the 2010 America’s Transportation Awards.

“It is always great when the hard work, dedication and expertise of our WSDOT employees are recognized,” said Paula Hammond, Washington transportation secretary. “WSDOT and contractor crews worked 14 hours a day, seven days a week to restore access to the 600 residents and businesses in the Nile Valley within the governor’s 45-day timeline.”

A panel of transportation experts will select one national winner in the contest sponsored by the American Association of State Highway Transportation Officials (AASHTO), and online voters will have a chance to pick the “People’s Choice Award.” The two national winners each receive $10,000 to fund a local community service project or charity. WSDOT hopes to put the money back into the Nile Valley community.

The Nile Valley landslide destroyed portions of SR 410 and disrupted the lives of many residents and travelers. WSDOT is asking the public to cast their votes to recognize and honor those who responded and put Washington state and its emergency-response efforts on the map.

To cast a vote for Washington’s Nile Valley landslide project, visit the AASHTO’s America’s Transportation Awards website at http://www.americastransportationaward.org/default.aspx now through Oct. 18.

For more information about the landslide project, visit the WSDOT website at  www.wsdot.wa.gov/Projects/SR410/NileValleyReconstruction/

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