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Bridges, transit centers highlight 2008 construction plan

Despite another lean transportation budget for 2008, the King County Department of Transportation will be breaking ground, constructing, and finishing off some significant capital projects over the next 12 months.

Preservation and maintenance of the existing roads network continues to be the focus for the King County Road Services Division. There are several road projects scheduled for 2008 that will help improve traffic flow in key corridors and intersections. These include intersection upgrades at Woodinville-Duvall Road and 212th Avenue Northeast; and at Southeast 304th Street at 124th Ave Southeast.

There are also projects scheduled to begin this year that will interconnect signals, add traffic cameras, data stations, and transit improvements for following corridors: Juanita-Woodinville Way near Northeast 160th Street; Avondale Road Northeast near Novelty Hill Road; 100th Avenue Northeast in Juanita; and South 277th Street near Kent.

Some of the biggest 2008 projects for the Roads Division are three new bridges to replace existing spans that have reached the end of their useful life.

The new Tolt Bridge.

A new Tolt Bridge, already under construction, is expected to be completed and open to traffic this summer. The old bridge, spanning the Snoqualmie River for more than 85 years, outlived its useful life and is considered structurally obsolete. The new bridge will have better sightlines and a wide shoulder for pedestrians and bicyclists.

Mt. Si Bridge under construction.

The Mt. Si Bridge has been in service for more than 90 years – first over the White River near Buckley and then relocated to the Snoqualmie River near North Bend in 1955. The new bridge will open this fall with a wider roadway, plus an eight-foot-wide shoulder on the west side and a four-foot shoulder and six-foot sidewalk on the east side.

The Roads Division is also scheduled to begin the replacement of the old timber, two-lane Bandaret Bridge south of Issaquah in 2008. Located on the May Valley Road, the bridge over Issaquah Creek is very heavily traveled and a critical transportation link.

For King County Metro Transit, construction efforts center on improving passenger connections and amenities at transit centers, park-and-rides, and bus stops.

The new Redmond Transit Center will open in February, and construction should start on an adjacent park-and-ride garage in the summer. Later this year, Metro will begin work on a new Burien Transit Center and expansion of the Brickyard Park-and-Ride between Bothell and Kirkland.

Work will continue to improve the lighting at park-and-ride lots across King County, as well as upgrading the shelters at dozens of bus stops.

More diesel hybrids are on the way.

On the operations side, Metro will be taking delivery of 22 new hybrid buses this year, and extending the bus trolley lines to the light rail stations that will begin serving Beacon Hill and the Rainier Valley in 2009.

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Updated: January 07, 2008

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