February 2012
- The contractor, Mowat Construction Company, has completed construction of both walls.
- Planting will be completed early 2012.
Wall heights and expected noise reductions:
Noise barriers of varying heights will be built at 14th Avenue/Thompson Place and Queets Drive in 2011. You can see:
Thompson Place (scroll down in PDF to view individual streets)
Queets Drive (scroll down in PDF to view individual streets)
Why is WSDOT
building noise barriers near Exit 111 in Lacey?
The original construction of I-5 did not consider noise impacts. There are locations on the I-5 corridor that have been ranked by priority on a statewide retrofit list.
Since 1976, WSDOT has been required to take noise levels into consideration during design of highway projects. Highways built prior to 1976 can qualify for noise reduction projects.
Currently, 72 sites have been identified and ranked, including the neighborhoods in the vicinity of 14th Ave. Thompson Place amd Queets Drive E. Tanglewilde. Noise walls are built according to rank, as funds are available.
We use a cost/benefit calculation that includes:
- Noise level before and after reduction
- Number of sensitive receivers, including residents and residential equivalents, like churches and schools, built prior to May 14, 1976
- Preliminary cost estimates
- Project Benefits
How is the construction work expected to proceed?
1) Land clearing – remove trees, bushes and level the area as needed to create an access road to the work zone.
2) Building an access road – construct and remove large embankments.
3) Shaft drilling – create approximately 300 shafts or holes for each wall and pour concrete foundations to support the sound barrier panels.
4) Panel installation – place and install pre-cast concrete panels, completing construction of the wall a segment at a time.
Find out more about noise barriers by visiting the FAQs Page
The End Result
Noise reduction. This project will noticeably reduce noise from I-5 for the outdoor residential areas behind the noise wall.
Project Benefits
What is the project timeline?
- November 2010 - advertise project to contractors
- January 2011 - award
- February 2011 - start construction, off-site fabrication and on-site surveying
- May 2011 - on-site construction
- Fall 2011 - complete wall construction
- Early 2012 - complete planting
Financial Information
This project is funded through the following sources:
- 2005 Transportation Partnership Account (Gas Tax) - $4.6 million
- Other Agency Funds (City of Lacey) - $915
- Total Funding From All Sources - $4.7 million
How can I get more information?
Contact:
Dennis Engel, Project Engineer
WSDOT Tumwater Project Office
821 Airport Court SE
Tumwater, WA 98501-6805
Phone: 360-357-2682
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