LAKE STEVENS — Late-night and early-morning westbound trestle commuters might see delays next week.
A safety barrier, called an attenuator, was damaged in April 2019. It collapsed as designed, but needs to be replaced for it to work again should someone crash into it. The project is estimated to cost $60,000.
Tapering of U.S. 2 lanes will begin farther east on the trestle, eventually closing the left lane. Crews are scheduled Monday to Friday for work from Highway 204 to I-5 on U.S. 2. One westbound lane is scheduled to close 8 p.m. to 4 a.m., as well as the off-ramp from the highway to 20th Street SE from 7 p.m. to 4 a.m.
“We finally have all the right people and right pieces in place to go out,” said Frances Fedoriska, a spokesperson for the Washington State Department of Transportation.
Weather might put the project on hold, however. Fedoriska said work can be done in a drizzle, but not a downpour or subfreezing temperatures because of an apoxy that will be used. National Weather Service forecasts showed a chance of snow Monday with a high of 30 degrees.
About 22,000 vehicles cross the trestle daily, according to WSDOT. Westbound traffic volume is minimal during the overnight hours and hopefully will pay attention to keep crews safe during work.
“We want people to be aware of what’s happening on the highways and why, and we want them to be aware of our crews,” she said. “We want to make sure they get home safely.”
During repaving work on U.S. 2 last year, similar overnight closures did not create major backups. That work on the trestle concluded in August.
Other projects are ahead for the highway this year.
Crews will finish paving from Bickford Avenue to Gold Bar. It includes rehabilitating the Pilchuck River bridge in Snohomish, median barrier installation around Bickford Avenue, rehabilitating the bridge decks of 19 bridges from west of Index to Skykomish, and a chip seal project on the other side of Stevens Pass.
All of that work is estimated to conclude by fall this year, depending on weather.
Ben Watanabe: bwatanabe @heraldnet.com; 425-339-3037. Twitter: @benwatanabe.
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