From upass@u.washington.edu Fri May 4 11:36:01 2001 Received: from jason05.u.washington.edu (root@jason05.u.washington.edu [140.142.8.54]) by lists.u.washington.edu (8.11.2+UW01.01/8.11.2+UW01.04) with ESMTP id f44IZx072174 for ; Fri, 4 May 2001 11:35:59 -0700 Received: from homer17.u.washington.edu (upass@homer17.u.washington.edu [140.142.8.17]) by jason05.u.washington.edu (8.11.2+UW01.01/8.11.2+UW01.04) with ESMTP id f44IZpA22416; Fri, 4 May 2001 11:35:51 -0700 Received: from localhost (upass@localhost) by homer17.u.washington.edu (8.11.2+UW01.01/8.11.2+UW01.04) with ESMTP id f44IZni09428; Fri, 4 May 2001 11:35:49 -0700 Date: Fri, 4 May 2001 11:35:49 -0700 (PDT) From: Transportation Office To: Subject: Northbound I-5 Construction Impacts Traffic Message-ID: MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: TEXT/PLAIN; charset=US-ASCII NORTHBOUND I-5 DOWN TO TWO LANES AT RAVENNA STARTING SUNDAY Starting at 7 a.m. Sunday, May 6, crews working for the Washington State Department of Transportation will reduce northbound Interstate 5 to two lanes for 19 consecutive days and nights at NE Ravenna Boulevard in Seattle. During the two-lane restriction, crews will resurface the I-5 bridge deck spanning NE Ravenna Blvd. The work will have significant impacts on traffic. >From May 6 through May 15, crews will close the two right northbound lanes across the bridge. From May 16 through May 25, crews will switch sides and close the two left lanes. Motorists should expect heavy congestion on northbound I-5 throughout this time, especially during evening commute hours. Motorists can also expect closures of two ramps in the area. From 7 a.m. Sunday, May 6 through 7 a.m. Tuesday, May 15, the ramp from NE 50th Street to northbound I-5 will be closed around the clock. During that same 10 days, the northbound I-5 exit to State Route 522 (Lake City Way) will close each night from 10 p.m. to 5 a.m. That exit will also close for one full weekend, from 10 p.m. Friday, May 11, to 5 a.m. Monday, May 14. Please note that the dates and times of all the above lane and ramp closures may change depending on weather. The I-5 Express Lanes will operate northbound for longer hours to help alleviate congestion that will result from the lane closures. Each weekday during this 19-day period, the Express Lanes will be switched northbound by 10 a.m., and will run northbound until the following morning at 3:30 a.m. They will open southbound each weekday from 5 a.m. to 9 a.m. Over the weekends of May 11 and May 18, the Express Lanes will remain open northbound around the clock. Please note that special events in downtown Seattle and possible work actions by state maintenance employees may modify the Express Lanes schedule. Following the bridge resurfacing work, night closures will continue at the same location through the end of June while crews complete the project. One northbound lane will close at 8 p.m., a second northbound lane will close at 10 p.m., and a third northbound lane will close at midnight, reducing northbound I-5 to one lane. All lanes will reopen by 5 a.m. the following weekday morning, and by 9 a.m. on weekends. Between May 25 and the end of June when lane closures are still occurring during night hours, the Express Lane operations will be reevaluated and operated accordingly. Also included in this project is bridge rail and expansion joint repair work at the northbound I-5 bridge crossing NE 103rd Street. Shoulder closures will occur during daytime hours, and lane closures will occur during night hours. Many questions have been coming in to the department regarding this construction project. Here are samples: 1) Why do the construction now when the viaduct still has closures in place? WSDOT engineers and managers discussed delaying this project until all lanes could be restored on the viaduct. However, on reviewing a heavy seasonal construction schedule and to accommodate special events scheduled throughout the summer, it was decided to move forward with resurfacing the Ravenna bridge now. 2) How am I supposed to get to work during this time? The University of Washington & WSDOT encourages motorists to postpone discretionary trips and use alternative commuting methods during this 19-day period, such as riding transit, vanpooling, carpooling, working from home, bicycling or walking. The Express Lanes will also operate northbound many more hours than usual to help alleviate northbound congestion. 3) Why aren't you doing this work at night? WSDOT is already doing as much work as possible during night hours to prepare the bridge deck for resurfacing. However, the actual resurfacing material will be concrete, which, once poured into place, must be allowed to cure to gain strength to withstand the rigors of traffic. Traffic cannot drive over the curing concrete until that process is completed, making daytime lane closures unavoidable. 4) What did WSDOT do to minimize impacts to traffic in the design of this project? Several methods of construction were explored when designing this project. This particular approach, of resurfacing half the bridge at a time in a continuous manner, proved to be the most efficient approach to the project needing the shortest time for lane closures. In addition, the contract was designed to accelerate work by offering financial incentives ($25,000 per day up to $75,000) to the contractor for completing the project early. The contractor may also be penalized if work is completed late. (Please note that weather-related delays will change the penalty time frame.) This project was awarded to Concrete Barrier, Inc. of Everett for a low bid of $1,289,390. For updated information on the above and other Department of Transportation traffic revisions in the Puget Sound area, call the Commuter Information Line at DOT-HIWY (206-368-4499). The Commuter Information Line may also be reached toll free in Washington at 1-800-695-ROAD (7623). TTY users can call 1-800-833-6388 and ask for (206) 515-3683. ****************************************************************************** University of Washington Transportation Office Box 355212 1127 N.E. Boat Street Seattle, WA 98105-6709 (206) 543-0450 www.washington.edu/upass/ ****************************************************************************** .