Date:  Wednesday, April 14, 2010

Contact: Leon Winger, WSDOT Vancouver Area Engineer, (360) 905-1500 (Vancouver)
Annie Linstrom, WSDOT Communications, (360) 905-2079 (Vancouver)

Crews pave roadway, improve traffic signals and add climbing lanes on SR 503

BATTLE GROUND – WSDOT and its contractor, Rotschy, Inc. of Yacolt will begin construction April 19 on a safety improvement project along SR 503.

The $7.5 million SR 503, Lewisville Climbing Lanes project, funded by the 2005 gas tax package, adds climbing lanes in both directions of SR 503 near Battle Ground to increase safety and reduce the severity of collisions and conflicts between slower traffic and large vehicles passing each other on the roadway. In addition, the project will resurface the intersection of SR 503 and Gabriel Road.

Drivers will encounter daytime single lane closures on SR 503 between NE 244th Street and NE 269th Street. Flaggers will direct traffic in alternating directions through the work zone as crews add 8,500 cubic yards of fill material to the existing roadside, conduct embankment work, and construct one new lane in each direction of the highway.

Crews will also grind out existing pavement and lay new asphalt on the road’s surface at the intersection of SR 503 and Gabriel Road. This work will require daytime single lane traffic, alternating directions with flagging.

Delays of up to 20-minutes are expected during construction and lane closures may occur on weekends or at night if conditions warrant. No lane closures are expected after 12 noon on Fridays.

Traffic signals, illumination and signage will also be upgraded throughout the project area. The project is scheduled for completion by the end of this year.

This section of SR 503 carries an average of 16,000 vehicles per day, 10 percent of which are trucks, RV’s and boats given the recreational location of this area. This safety improvement project will increase driver safety, and preserve the conditions of the roadway for years to come.


For more information about the project, please visit: www.wsdot.wa.gov/projects/SR503/LewisvilleClimbingLane/  

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WSDOT's mission is to keep people, businesses and the economy moving by operating and improving the state's transportation systems. To learn more about what we're doing, go to www.wsdot.wa.gov/news for pictures, videos, news and blogs. Real time traffic information is available at www.wsdot.wa.gov/traffic or by dialing 5-1-1.

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