Date:  Sunday, April 03, 2011

Contact: Gil McNabb, WSDOT Project Engineer, (425) 238-0314
Steve Peer, WSDOT Communications, (425) 301-2023 

UPDATE 3:55 p.m.: The NE 12th Street bridge will open early at 6 p.m. to westbound traffic only, not at 5 a.m. Monday as originally scheduled. A link to the detour for eastbound bridge traffic is now available on What’s Happening Now.

BELLEVUE – Engineers have inspected the damage to the new NE 12th Street bridge in Bellevue and determined it can be opened to traffic on Sunday, April 3 at 6 p.m. but traffic will be limited to one westbound lane only. The current bridge carries one lane of traffic in each direction.

During the complicated removal process Saturday, a concrete piece from the old bridge hit a girder on the new bridge at the west end in an area that is not directly over I-405 lanes. Preliminary inspections show the new bridge can safely carry some traffic. This afternoon, traffic engineers worked out the details of a detour plan scheduled to be in place when the bridge reopens at 6 p.m. A link to the detour can be found on WSDOT's What's Happening Now website. 

Damage isn’t considered major, but further analysis and plans will determine how and when the damage will be repaired.
 
The incident from yesterday morning will have no effect on the anticipated 4 a.m. Monday reopening of I-405, which is closed all weekend for the demolition of the old 12th Street bridge.

For details and detour routes, visit www.wsdot.wa.gov/Projects/I405/NE8thtoSR520/NE12th.htm

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WSDOT's mission is to keep people, businesses and the economy moving by operating and improving the state's transportation systems. To learn more about what we're doing, go towww.wsdot.wa.gov/news for pictures, videos, news and blogs. Real time traffic information is available at www.wsdot.wa.gov/traffic/ or by dialing 511

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