By Kate Reardon
Herald Writer
Motorists who want to avoid inconveniences caused by upcoming road construction in the Everett area can try driving at different times or taking alternate routes.
The Highway 529 northbound bridge will see additional closures in coming days for construction and for tugs pulling logs into the Snohomish River, transportation officials said.
Westbound motorists on the Hewitt Avenue trestle will see some changes as a second phase of construction there begins Tuesday. That work will mean that only one lane will be open to westbound traffic between the county’s east side and Everett because a detour route under the bridge will no longer be open.
To relieve some of the expected congestion there, state transportation officials have offered an incentive to the contractor to open the Lowell-Snohomish River Road for morning commuters. That could happen as early as Sept. 24, said Steve Miller, engineering manager with the state Department of Transportation.
The River Road would be open to westbound motorists during the morning commute between 5 and 9 a.m., he said. Miller said he estimates the road would see 400 to 500 cars each day during that opening.
Transportation officials are trying other measures to make it easier for people to get around during construction after the closure last month of the northbound Highway 529 bridge. That closure created a traffic jam nightmare in and near Everett for days.
The Transportation Department has offered the River Road contractor an incentive of as much as $35,000 to finish work faster, Miller said. Snohomish County officials said the $9 million River Road project was expected to be complete in October.
Some officials were concerned about using River Road as an alternate route.
"You are putting too many cars in the neighborhood, and someone is going to get hurt," Everett City Council member Ron Gipson said at a council meeting Wednesday. "I would ask that you do anything to delay the opening of the River Road where it will cause chaos, and I can’t just sit here and let this happen."
Mayor Ed Hansen and city attorney Mark Soine also expressed concern about the impacts to the Lowell neighborhood.
"It will certainly be a shock to that neighborhood, which hasn’t had traffic in five years," Soine said.
A flood in 1995 washed out a portion on the west end, near the Lowell neighborhood. About 4,600 cars drove the road daily before the washout. Snohomish County predictions show that number could increase to 5,100 this year and to 6,500 by 2012.
Klara Fabry, an area administrator for the Transportation Department’s northwest region, said officials are also working with Community Transit to offer free bus rides during peak commuting hours throughout the second phase of trestle construction.
The Transportation Department is also sending about 50,000 fliers to inform motorists about the construction.
— Herald reporter Theresa Goffredo contributed to this report
You can call Herald Writer Kate Reardon at 425-339-3455
or send e-mail to reardon@heraldnet.com.
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