STANWOOD — A well-worn stretch of I-5 straddling both sides of the Snohomish-Skagit county line is being resurfaced for the first time in a generation.
That work is bringing weeks of late-night lane closures. Starting Tuesday, state road crews will close the Starbird Road exit for southbound traffic north of Stanwood. The exit will remain closed for two weeks.
“It will be a little bit of an inconvenience, but we’re not expecting it to be too much of a hassle for anybody,” said Bronlea Mishler, a spokeswoman with the state Department of Transportation.
DOT is replacing and patching cracked concrete panels on about six miles of I-5 from the Highway 532 exit, north to the Hill Ditch bridge near Conway.
Mishler said many of the concrete panels have been in place since the freeway was expanded in the early 1970s using some adjacent lanes that date back to the 1950s. The road’s surface is rutted and cracked and requires frequent repairs.
As a long-term fix, the state this summer is spending $19.2 million — including $9.2 million in federal highway stimulus money — to spruce up the freeway.
The work is expected to create a smoother ride for the nearly 60,000 vehicles that travel the stretch of freeway each day and cut down on upkeep expenses.
Crews will close the southbound I-5 exit to Starbird Road for two weeks, from Tuesday until Aug. 17. Drivers will be detoured to the 300th Street NW interchange during the Starbird Road ramp closure.
David Chircop: 425-339-3429, dchircop@heraldnet.com.
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