EDMONDS — Construction to improve the intersection of 76th Avenue W and 212th Street SW by Edmonds-Woodway High School is set to start April 10. Work is expected to continue into November.
A public meeting to share more details about the project and work schedule is set for 6 p.m. Thursday in the library at the high school, 7600 212th St. SW.
The $5.9 million project aims to improve traffic flow as well as make travel safer for cyclists. Federal and state grants cover nearly 70 percent of project costs.
Striping on 76th Avenue will reduce through traffic from two lanes in each direction to one lane in each direction. Instead, a center turn lane will be added, as well as room for dedicated bike lanes. Right-turn lanes also will be added in both directions of 76th Avenue, and for westbound 212th Street traffic.
The reconfiguration means the city can use new traffic signals that move both directions of 76th Avenue at the same time, with phases for left turns and through traffic. Currently, only one direction of traffic can go at a time to allow for turns, causing backups.
“It will be a significant improvement,” said Bertrand Hauss, the city’s transportation engineer.
Water, storm and sewer utilities will be upgraded, and overhead utilities will be converted to an underground system. That’s one reason the project is expected to take seven months. “That’s a lot of coordination,” Hauss said.
The project also will add bike lanes on both roadways, extending well beyond the intersection itself, especially on 76th Avenue.
Bike lanes on 76th Avenue will begin at 220th Street and continue north to 198th Street in Lynnwood by Edmonds Community College. A combination of bike lanes and “sharrow” markings will continue north to Olympic View Drive by Lynndale Park. (A “sharrow” depicts a bike with chevron-style arrows, marking preferred bicycle routes and reminding vehicle drivers to share the road.)
The 212th Street bike lanes will begin at the Five Corners intersection and continue about 4,000 feet east to 72nd Avenue.
Those improvements are part of the Bike 2 Health project, which aims to better connect bicycle routes in south Snohomish County. The city also will add signs to find different destinations at multiple locations.
Lynnwood made similar improvements in 2016. Mountlake Terrace also plans improvements.
Once complete, the Bike 2 Health project will help cyclists get to and from major destinations, including the community college, the Edmonds ferry terminal, the Lynnwood and Mountlake Terrace transit centers, and Swift bus rapid transit stations.
A $580,000 grant from Verdant Health Commission covers the bulk of Edmonds’ bicycle-related improvements.
The city had hoped to start the intersection project last year, but bids came in more than $1 million above budget. Staff focused on securing a large state grant after that, and this year’s bids came in on target.
“We are ready to go,” Hauss said.
More info
www.edmondswa.gov/76th-212th-intersection-improvements.html
http://tinyurl.com/Bike2Health
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