What are piles and what is pile driving?
Piles are supports for a structure. For this project, steel piles form the foundations of bridges crossing the West Hylebos, Hylebos and Wapato creeks. The piles look like giant, hollow, steel tubes. A pile driver is a machine mounted on a tall crane that pounds the piles into the ground. Watch a video clip of pile driving.
Why is WSDOT driving piles in Fife and Milton?
We are widening both directions of I-5 between the King/Pierce county line and Port of Tacoma Road so we can add carpool lanes. We are widening in the median, which means we need to build bridges over the creeks that flow under and in the median of the freeway. These bridges require pile driving.
How long will pile driving continue?
Pile driving for the project was completed in June 2010.
