Date:
Friday, March 12, 2010
Contact:
Sandy Lam, WSDOT Communications, 206-440-4697 (Seattle)
Amir Ahmadi, WSDOT Project Engineer, 425-225-8725 (Everett)
DUVALL – Drivers should expect lane closures starting next week as crews begin work to improve safety on the 24-mile SR 203 corridor between Fall City and Monroe. As part of the $6.6 million project funded by the 2005 gas tax package, crews will add turn lanes, guardrail and rumble strips.
For the past several weeks, crews have been working on the shoulder of the highway, prepping the project area for construction. Starting Monday, March 15, drivers can expect to see nightly lane closures as crews begin installing guardrail.
“SR 203 is experiencing increasingly heavy traffic,” said Amir Ahmadi, WSDOT project engineer. “We’re making targeted safety improvements to reduce the risk of serious collisions on the entire route.”
Nearly 14,000 vehicles a day use the northern segment of SR 203, with about 8,000 vehicles traveling the southern end of the corridor. From January 2005 through December 2008 there were 691 collisions on SR 203, including 157 run-off-the-road collisions. Crews will add shoulder rumble strips and guardrail to help keep drivers safely in their lane of travel and on the roadway.
The project also includes new turn lanes to provide refuge for turning drivers and reduce the risk of rear-end and sideswipe collisions. Crews will add a two-way left-turn lane between North High Rock Road and Tualco Road and a southbound right-turn pocket at 203rd Street SE. From 2005 to 2008 there were 34 collisions on SR 203 between North High Rock Road and Tualco Road, including one fatal collision and three serious injury collisions. Crews expect to wrap up work on the project this fall. For more information, visit: www.wsdot.wa.gov/projects/sr203/corridorsafety.
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