Date:
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Contact:
Dustin Terpening, WSDOT Communications, 360-757-5997
Marco Foster, WSDOT Engineering Manager, 360-757-5991
BELLINGHAM - Fixing I-5 through Bellingham is no joke, even though work does begin on April Fools Day.
Starting April 1, WSDOT will close lanes at night and on weekends to repair and repave more than three miles of I-5. Drivers should be prepared for significant delays.
Crews will replace 212 broken concrete panels, pave four rough ramps, and smooth 11 bumpy transitions across bridges. The work will take up to two months to complete.
“Anyone who has driven through this section of I-5 knows it's rough in places,” Engineering Manager Marco Foster said. “The work we’re going to do will help smooth it out.”
Drivers will see the biggest closures on four weekends in April and May. During these 56-hour closures, crews will reduce I-5 to one lane in each direction from Samish Way to Sunset Drive. Crews will close the lanes at 10 p.m. Friday and open them at 6 a.m. Monday.
“There’s never a good time for this work, but we’re going to try and finish the work as fast as we can,” Project Engineer Dave Crisman said. “There are financial incentives to encourage the contractor to finish the work early.”
Crews can close lanes as follows:
Nights – any night of the week
Weekends – around the clock on weekends, for four weekends in April and May
Week-long – around the clock for two weeks in May, north of Slater Road
Ramps – any night of the week
This section of road was built in the 1950s and is showing its age through settling, cracks and broken panels. It needs repairs to better meet the needs of the nearly 80,000 drivers who use it every day. The work will cost $4.5 million.
The best way to stay informed about lane closures is to sign up for e-mail updates at www.wsdot.wa.gov/northwest/emailupdates, and subscribe for Whatcom County.
All the project information will be available on the project Web site as well, www.wsdot.wa.gov/Projects/I5/36thStToSlaterRdRepairs.
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