11/15/2013
Reed Hollinshead
ITD Communication
208-334-8881
reed.hollinshead@itd.idaho.gov
Southwest Idaho highway construction report for Nov. 15-22
BOISE - The following projects in southwest Idaho are now under way:
ADA COUNTY
BOISE - Idaho 16 Extension, river crossing and local road connections (GARVEE)
Construction continues on the 2.5-mile extension of Idaho 16 connecting Chinden Boulevard (U.S. 20/26) to State Street (Idaho 44), including a 1,726-foot-long, 11-span, 10-pier, 88-foot-wide bridge over the Boise River and a new crossing of the Phyllis Canal. More than 1.5 million pounds of rebar and over 36.6 million pounds of concrete are used in the bridge.
Work began in May 2012 and is expected to finish by the fall of 2014.
Concrete guardrails separate traffic from construction activities, but motorists are encouraged to drive with caution.
Crews continue to place concrete for bridge parapet and cast-in-place concrete guardrail for the new bridge over the Boise River. They are also completing concrete paving from the north side of the river to Idaho 44. Crews also are completing placement of base gravel along the shoulders of the roadway, seeding the finished slopes of the roadway, and installing wiring for a new traffic-congestion camera to be placed above the river bridge.
The connection of the local roads to Chinden and to State streets continues, as crews completed paving the bottom lift of pavement for the lanes on the north half of Idaho 44 last week and shifted the traffic onto those lanes. The area east of the old intersection of Idaho 44/16 is being pulverized and graded to prepare for bottom-lift paving late this week or early next week, weather dependent. Crews also are working to complete the irrigation crossings on Idaho 44, and installing the signal for the Ada County Paramedics Station on Dawes Road.
Crews have completed most of the work on the project for the Phyllis Canal bridge and south staging. Only some seeding, fencing and concrete barrier remain to be completed this fall. In the spring, they will complete the guardrail installation, crash cushions and pavement marking and signing.
Pioneer Irrigation District is installing concrete canal lining from 300 feet upstream of the new Idaho 16 bridge to 300 feet below the new bridge. This work is sponsored by the irrigation district, not ITD.
GARVEE (Grant Anticipation Revenue Vehicle) bonds allowed the Idaho Transportation Department to advance critical infrastructure improvements in vital corridors throughout the state.
Concrete Placing Co., of Boise, and Idaho Sand & Gravel, of Nampa, are the prime contractors on these projects. Knife River Construction, of Boise, and Nampa Paving are two of the main subcontractors for this work. The total construction cost is $38.94 million.
BOISE COUNTY
GARDEN VALLEY - South Fork Payette River Bridge
Crews are working to replace the old bridge over the south fork of the Payette River near Garden Valley.
The old bridge, located southwest of town, also called the Alder Creek Bridge or Silver Bridge, has a sufficiency rating of less than 50. Boise County is the local sponsor.
The new bridge will be relocated upstream and the existing bridge will serve as a detour during construction.
Work on the initial phase of the project will continue until the winter shutdown in early December.
Construction on the other half of the bridge will begin next spring, after crews remove the existing bridge. Work is expected to take most of the summer.
Ralph L. Wadsworth Construction Company Inc., of Draper, Utah, is the contractor on this $2.3 million project.
This is an LHTAC (Local Highway Technical Assistance Council) project. ITD has oversight responsibility for this work.
VALLEY COUNTY
CASCADE – Bridge Replacement
Replacement of the North Fork Payette River Bridge in downtown Cascade is wrapping up.
The old, narrow, width-restricted bridge built in 1933 has been replaced with one more than twice as wide. The earlier bridge was 24 feet wide, and was replaced with a 60-foot wide, 393-foot long, three-span bridge. The new bridge has two 12-foot lanes, two 11-foot shoulders and a 14-foot median.
In addition, a paved extension to the dirt shared-use path under the bridge on the north side of the river was built to provide access from both sides of the bridge to the new riverside park.
Crews completed curb under the guardrail this week, performed final striping and set the metal safety rail on the parapet. They also continued painting the pile and doing general cleanup. Permanent signs are scheduled to be installed next week. With the bridge entirely open and striped, there is no longer a need for flaggers. There will be lane shifts on the bridge (utilizing the median) in order to accommodate shoulder work and equipment. Two lanes of traffic will remain open at all times.
Wadsworth Brothers Construction Co. Inc., of Draper, Utah, is the contractor on this $4.83 million project.
WASHINGTON COUNTY
WEISER – replacement of bridge over Weiser River
The replacement of a 78-year-old bridge over the Weiser River on U.S. 95 south of Weiser is nearly complete.
The two-lane bridge, one of 99 remaining on the state system built before 1936, will be replaced with a three-lane structure. The existing bridge has 26 feet of drivable width, but the new one will be expanded to 48. An average of 7,300 vehicles use the bridge daily. More than 100 million vehicle trips have been taken across the bridge during its lifetime.
In addition to replacing the aging bridge, crews also will reconstruct more than 500 feet of bridge approaches at the north and south ends.
The existing bridge has a sidewalk and two 13-foot lanes, but no shoulders. The new bridge will be 346 feet long and 55 feet wide, with two 12-foot lanes and a 12-foot center turn lane. The project features a two-foot buffer next to the decorative bridge railing, a five-foot shoulder and a five-foot sidewalk on the west side. No bike lanes will be included in the project.
The project is almost done. All paving and concrete work has been completed. Work on signs and street lights still need to be completed, as well as cleanup. The contractor’s schedule indicates they will finish prior to Thanksgiving.
Braun-Jensen, of Payette, is the prime contractor on the $4.8 million project.