EVERETT — Almost all the I-5 ramps in Everett are expected to get new asphalt over the next six weeks — if the weather permits.
Crews want to repave 11 ramps along the freeway between Broadway and Marine View Drive as part of the state’s I-5 widening project. State officials plan to do the work chunk by chunk, closing one or two ramps at a time.
All the ramp closures are expected to happen on weekends, requiring drivers to take detours, state officials said. The state doesn’t want to do the work during weekdays due to heavy traffic on I-5. About 170,000 vehicles on average use the freeway through Everett every day, said Mike Cotten, the I-5 widening project manager for the state Department of Transportation.
The recent unpredictable weather has prevented crews from starting the work for a few weeks. New asphalt needs dry, warm weather to settle on roads, said David Doles, project manager for contractor Atkinson-CH2M Hill.
“If it’s not hard enough, then it breaks up easily,” Doles said.
State officials had planned to grind out asphalt on two I-5 ramps this week: the northbound off-ramp to U.S. 2 and the southbound on-ramp from Pacific Avenue. They had crews and materials ready for the work.
But it started raining on Friday. More rain is forecast over the weekend. Crews cancelled their plan.
“Everybody who does construction work in the Puget Sound region knows this is going to happen,” Doles said. “The weather is unpredictable.”
Nonetheless, the I-5 widening project in Everett is in its homestretch, state officials said this week.
Workers already have replaced a concrete girder that supports I-5 over Pacific Avenue. The 95-foot-long girder was damaged in December 2006 when an excavator struck the underside of the freeway.
The girder replacement project has closed a middle lane on southbound I-5 since March, forcing drivers to maneuver around an island of work zone. Traffic has been flowing smoothly despite the work zone.
The work is expected to wrap up in a few weeks, said Patty Michaud, a transportation department spokeswoman.
A new southbound carpool lane is set to open on I-5 from Marine View Drive to the Lowell bridge by the end of this month. Another new carpool lane on the northbound freeway is also set to open in May.
The state started widening I-5 in Everett in 2005. The $263 million work is the third most expensive highway project in the state’s history, state officials said.
The project will benefit from sunny days, Michaud said. Crews are ready to put down asphalt on ramps along the freeway.
“We are keeping our fingers crossed for the weather,” she said.
Reporter Yoshiaki Nohara: 425-339-3029 or ynohara@heraldnet.com.
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