Storm cleanup could mean big delays on I-405
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RENTON, Wash - A warning from the Washington State Department of Transportation: Things could get tough on I-405 if one-third of the drivers on the freeway don't find an alternative route for the next two weeks as repairs need to be made after last week's flooding.
Some 139,000 cars use I-405 each day. The water that broke a culvert on the westside of the road near Benson Road in Renton came from Thunder Hill Creek on the eastside of the freeway.
Fixing the broken culvert requires that a new pipeline be built around the area from the nearly inaccessible eastside. It will require that crews shut down a northbound lane.
"That operation could be 20 hours a day during the work week," said Lisa Hodgson with the Department of Transportation. "We will try to open up (all) the lanes from 5 to 10 am to help the a.m. commute."
The work will take two weeks, and the state says it could be gridlock if one-third of the drivers don't get off the road.
A similar two-week nightmare looms near Darrington on Highway 530. Here, the Sauk River is undercutting the road in two areas. Beginning Friday the road will be one lane.
Highway 542 east of Maple Falls in Whatcom County has similar problems. There is currently a 50,000 lb load limit and one lane will be closed beginning this weekend to stabilize the roadway.
But drivers in those three areas have it better than those who use the Seattle Hill road near Snohomish. A culvert was overwhelmed by an unnamed creek. It blew out the road and undermined it to the center-line.
Contractors threw sandbags along the stream some 20 or so feet below the road to help in a diversion project that must be completed before replacement of the culvert and road repair. In the meantime, the road is closed.
"This project had been on our watch list for years, and it had been functioning just fine," said Janice Fahning, an assistant project engineer, told KOMO 4 News. "It was really the heavy rains that overwhelmed the system."
We learned it will cost between $3 million and $5 million to fix the mess.
"Not only do we have to replace the culvert, we need to replace the retaining wall," Fahning said. "We're working adjacent to wetlands, and we have utilities above and below the roadway."
If that sounds bad, it is. The road will be closed through mid-January.
Some 139,000 cars use I-405 each day. The water that broke a culvert on the westside of the road near Benson Road in Renton came from Thunder Hill Creek on the eastside of the freeway.
Fixing the broken culvert requires that a new pipeline be built around the area from the nearly inaccessible eastside. It will require that crews shut down a northbound lane.
"That operation could be 20 hours a day during the work week," said Lisa Hodgson with the Department of Transportation. "We will try to open up (all) the lanes from 5 to 10 am to help the a.m. commute."
The work will take two weeks, and the state says it could be gridlock if one-third of the drivers don't get off the road.
A similar two-week nightmare looms near Darrington on Highway 530. Here, the Sauk River is undercutting the road in two areas. Beginning Friday the road will be one lane.
Highway 542 east of Maple Falls in Whatcom County has similar problems. There is currently a 50,000 lb load limit and one lane will be closed beginning this weekend to stabilize the roadway.
But drivers in those three areas have it better than those who use the Seattle Hill road near Snohomish. A culvert was overwhelmed by an unnamed creek. It blew out the road and undermined it to the center-line.
Contractors threw sandbags along the stream some 20 or so feet below the road to help in a diversion project that must be completed before replacement of the culvert and road repair. In the meantime, the road is closed.
"This project had been on our watch list for years, and it had been functioning just fine," said Janice Fahning, an assistant project engineer, told KOMO 4 News. "It was really the heavy rains that overwhelmed the system."
We learned it will cost between $3 million and $5 million to fix the mess.
"Not only do we have to replace the culvert, we need to replace the retaining wall," Fahning said. "We're working adjacent to wetlands, and we have utilities above and below the roadway."
If that sounds bad, it is. The road will be closed through mid-January.
