Work begins on I-5 barrier

Published 4:02 pm Friday, September 11, 2009

MARYSVILLE — John Holschen was glad to hear that work had begun to install concrete barriers along a stretch of I-5 where his teenage daughter, Megan, was killed in a head-on collision nearly five years ago.

“I would say that is awesome,” said Holschen of Bothell. “I’m glad it’s coming to pass.”

State crews this week began work to widen the center shoulder on a 10-mile stretch of northbound I-5 in Marysville and Arlington where the concrete barriers will be placed.

The prep work is scheduled to continue through October. Barriers are expected to be set out beginning in November, with the $18.9 million project expected to take about a year. In addition to the concrete barriers, the project includes new traffic cameras, electronic message signs and traffic sensors along the freeway.

Since 2000, eight people have died in across-the-median crashes on the stretch, an area that has cable barriers.

In June 2005, shortly after one of the fatal wrecks, the state reduced the speed limit to 60 mph from 70 mph along that stretch. A second row of cables was added later. The state also hired an independent expert to study what to do about the deadly stretch of highway.

In 2007, the consultant recommended replacing the cable barriers along this stretch of highway with concrete barriers. The state concluded that the cable barriers not only were the wrong tool to use in Marysville, but that they had been improperly installed.

The state earlier this year settled a lawsuit alleging that the cable barriers failed to prevent a deadly crossover crash in 2005. The state agreed to pay $1 million to the children of a couple killed in a crash on I-5 near Marysville, according to court documents.

Darrell and Sandra Knapp and their 6-year-old son Noah, all of Marysville, died after a truck hauling a fifth-wheel trailer crossed the median and slammed into their Ford Taurus. Two Bothell men in a separate vehicle also were injured in the crash.

The Knapps’ adult daughter and her husband last year filed a lawsuit against the state and the pickup driver, William Murphy. They alleged that the state failed to install a barrier that would prevent crossover crashes, such as the one that killed the Knapps.

Murphy’s insurance agreed to pay the Knapps’ children $270,000. The state also agreed to pay the Bothell men $250,000.

The Knapps’ daughter initially filed a claim with the state seeking $9 million in damages. The lawsuit was filed after the state failed to take action on the claim.

None of the defendants admitted any wrongdoing as part of the settlement reached in May.

Three years ago, the state also paid out $2 million to the Holschen family. The Dec. 15, 2004, crash that killed Megan Holschen, 18, also severely injured her mother and younger sister.

John Holschen said the family sees improving highway safety as Megan’s legacy. He said that from what he’s read, there are many types of cable barriers, that they work well in some situations but not others, and the outcome is not always predictable.

“They need more research to identify where particular barriers work and where they do not so we don’t waste taxpayer money installing barriers that will not protect us,” he said.

State officials say the cable barriers they’ve installed have worked well in most instances.

“We’re seeing that cross-median and median fatalities are continuing to decrease,” said Meghan Pembroke, a state Department of Transportation spokeswoman.

Cable barriers are installed on 181 miles of highway in the state, she said. The state plans to install the barriers along another 35 miles in the next two years.

The state Legislature originally authorized $30.5 million to pay for concrete barriers in Marysville but money was saved on design and the project came in well under bid, Pembroke said.

Tri-State Construction of Bellevue has been hired to do the work. The company will install concrete barriers on the northbound side while the cable barriers on the south side will remain as extra protection.

State officials believe the concrete barriers will bring a new risk to northbound drivers. They expect drivers will hit the wall harder than they would a cable barrier, and they could bounce off into other vehicles.

Still, the barriers are used extensively along the state’s highway system. They are expected to improve overall safety in Marysville by reducing head-on crashes, according to the state

John Holschen agrees. He’s a fan of concrete barriers.

“Generally, it’s a glancing blow,” he said of any impact that occurs. “In most of those cases drivers will walk away. Drivers don’t walk away from the head-on collisions at highway speed.”

Bill Sheets: 425-339-3439; sheets@heraldnet.com.

Roadwork ahead

Crews plan occasional lane closures on northbound I-5 in Marysville through October as they prepare the roadway for installation of concrete barriers. Closures will follow a similar pattern to the one used for three nights this week when the two left lanes of northbound I-5 were closed overnight. The first lane will close as early as 7 p.m. and the second lane will close as early as 8 p.m. Both lanes will reopen by 7 a.m. the next day.

For more information, go to http://tinyurl.com/ocg5eg.