Date:  Monday, April 19, 2010

Contact: Greg Phipps, WSDOT Communications, 206.267.6019 (Seattle)
Aleta Borschowa, WSDOT Project Engineer, 206.768.5862 (Seattle) 

April 21, 2010 update: Work scheduled to begin Wednesday on this project has been postponed due to a construction equipment problem. A new date for construction to begin has not yet been set.

SEATTLE – Crews working for the Washington State Department of Transportation begin work on the SR 99 Aurora Bridge safety fence this Wednesday night. Workers from Massana Construction will install an 8-foot 9-inch high fence on the outer edge of the 78-year-old bridge. The $4.6 million project is designed to discourage people from jumping off the bridge.

Crew will work Sunday through Thursday nights and will work on one side of the bridge at a time. Construction will close two lanes and the adjacent sidewalk across the bridge from 9 p.m. to 5 a.m. nightly. WSDOT expects to finish installing the fence by the end of the year.

Why a safety fence?
The fence resulted from a grassroots effort led by Seattle FRIENDS, a group formed in 2006 in response to a spike in suicides that year. WSDOT then examined a number of possible suicide prevention measures and determined that fencing was the most feasible and effective alternative.

“Suicide by jumping is a public safety issue that has a wide range of effects on those who work and live near the bridge, and on emergency responders,” said WSDOT Regional Administrator Lorena Eng. “Fencing has a proven track record of reducing suicides at the locations where they are installed.”

WSDOT worked with multiple agencies, took part in community workshops and consulted with an advisory committee, volunteer architects and the city of Seattle Landmarks Preservation Board before arriving at the final fence design.

Construction and noise
The work that starts this Wednesday involves all of the work associated with installing steel anchor bolts in the bridge deck. In late summer crews will start attaching the fence to the anchor bolts. During the overnight closures, pedestrians and bicyclists will be detoured to the opposite sidewalk.

Residents in Fremont and Queen Anne may hear noise levels of construction equipment ebb and flow as crews make circuits around the bridge completing each phase of work. The noise level will vary depending on the construction activity. The loudest work will be the drilling of the holes for the anchor bolts. Drilling is scheduled to begin in early May in the northwest end of the bridge in the Fremont neighborhood.

We are taking steps to minimize construction noise, including noise shields around generators and ambient back up alarms on equipment. We have also set up a 24-hour noise hotline and are sending industrial-strength earplugs free-of-charge to local residents who call 206-267-6019.

We recognize that this work will be inconvenient for drivers and noisy for residents, but we will work to get the fence built as quickly as possible. To stay on top of the closures and get more information about the work, www.wsdot.wa.gov/Projects/SR99/AuroraBridgeFence

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