Date:  Monday, June 06, 2011

Contact: Meghan Soptich Pembroke, WSDOT communications, 206-440-4704 (Shoreline)
Chad Brown, WSDOT project engineer, 425-225-8725 (Everett)
Detour maps and a project video are online.

Lengthy detour means drivers will need to allow extra time

EVERETT – Drivers should make plans to avoid delays as crews begin nighttime construction closures of the westbound US 2 trestle, an aging span in need of repairs connecting Lake Stevens and Everett.

Crews will close westbound US 2 between State Route 9 and Interstate 5 from 7:30 p.m. Thursday, June 9 to 5 a.m. Friday, June 10. Drivers can expect up to 65 full closures of the westbound trestle Sunday through Thursday nights this summer while crews repair girders supporting the trestle to help keep it safe and open for traffic.

“Fully closing the trestle will allow the concrete repairs to cure properly without added weight and vibration from vehicles on the roadway above,” said Chad Brown, Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) project engineer. “We want drivers to pay attention to advance warning signs and use our online tools to help avoid lengthy delays.”

During the closures, drivers can choose alternate routes or follow signed detours using SR 9 and SR 528 to the north and SR 9 and SR 96 to the south. Most drivers should expect the detour to add 15 to 25 minutes to their trips depending on their destination. Drivers headed to Everett will face the longest detour route and should allow an additional 30-35 minutes for their trips.

About 72,000 vehicles use the route daily, including commuters heading from east Snohomish County to I-5 and job centers in Everett. Doing the work at night keeps this key route open for daytime commute traffic, Brown said.

The westbound US 2 trestle is nearly 40 years old and the girders that support it are showing their age. Crews will chip off and replace cracking concrete on 844 girders and remove corrosion from the steel frame. They will then reinforce the girders by applying a carbon fiber mesh and new concrete over the exposed steel.

Construction on this $8 million project is expected to wrap up by October.

For project details and a detour map, visit www.wsdot.wa.gov/Projects/US2/TrestleRehabStage2/default.htm. Watch a video about the project narrated by the project engineer at www.youtube.com/watch?v=NT9blxb0WnE.

In 2007, WSDOT completed a similar project on the eastern end of the trestle. Read more about the 2007 project online at www.wsdot.wa.gov/Projects/US2/EbeyIslandBridgeRepair/default.htm.

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