Date:  Tuesday, March 04, 2008

Contact: Patty Michaud, WSDOT Communications, (425) 405-1785 (Everett), cell (206) 786-4079
Connie Lewis, WSDOT Communications, (425) 405-1796 (Everett), cell (425) 471-4222

EVERETT – I-5 Everett crews have a lot to accomplish overnight on Wednesday, March 5, which means drivers should prepare for ramp and lane closures and rolling slowdowns on southbound I-5.

On Thursday morning, crews will begin replacing a damaged girder on southbound I-5 over Pacific Avenue. To prepare, they’ll spend Wednesday night restriping southbound I-5 between Everett Avenue and 41st Street to create a traffic split around a new construction zone. Crews will work all night in order to have all three lanes open with the traffic split in place by 4:30 a.m. Thursday, March 6.

Lane and ramp closures

• Crews will close the left lane between just north of the Snohomish River bridge and 41st Street at 7 p.m. At 8 p.m., they’ll close the center lane, leaving only the right lane open.
• From approximately 10:30 to 11:30 p.m., crews will close the southbound I-5 exit ramps to Everett Avenue, eastbound US 2, 41st Street and the southbound I-5 on-ramps from Pacific Avenue and westbound US 2. During this hour, drivers headed for downtown Everett will need to use SR 526.
• At 11:30 p.m., crews will reopen the southbound I-5 exit to Everett Avenue and US 2. 41st Street and the southbound I-5 on-ramps from Pacific Avenue and westbound US 2 will remain closed until 4:30 a.m., Thursday, March 6.

Rolling slowdown
Once crews complete the striping on the left lanes at approximately 11:30 p.m., they will shift traffic from the far right lane to the far left lane to complete the remaining striping. At midnight, Washington State Patrol will assist crews by starting a rolling slowdown in Marysville. State Patrol troopers will slowly guide southbound traffic from the right to the left as crews shift barrels to the right lane.

Once crews and State Patrol complete the shift, traffic will remain in the far left lane until the traffic split is in place early Thursday morning.

Traffic split in place
The southbound I-5 traffic split will be in place by 4:30 a.m., Thursday, March 6 and remain for up to eight weeks. Two lanes will run on the left side of the work zone, and one lane will be on the right. Drivers can use any of the three lanes to continue on southbound I-5. However, drivers wishing to use the Everett Avenue, US 2 or 41st Street exits must use the right lane.

Plan for additional nighttime closures in March and April
Drivers should be prepared for additional nighttime closures throughout the Pacific Avenue bridge girder replacement project. On most nights, crews will close two southbound I-5 lanes and many ramps and exits between Everett Avenue and 41st Street. Crews will close the Marine View drive entrance to southbound I-5 every night.

During the closure, crews will replace a 95-foot-long girder that supports southbound I-5 over Pacific Avenue in Everett. In December 2006, a third party truck hauling an excavator, struck and severely damaged a girder on the I-5 southbound bridge passing over Pacific Avenue. While the bridge has been temporarily repaired to allow traffic to safely pass over and under it, crews must replace the girder to permanently fix the bridge.

Find out more about the Pacific Avenue bridge girder replacement project and get closure and detour information by visiting www.wsdot.wa.gov/Projects/I5/PacAveBridgeGirder/DetourMaps.htm.

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