5/22/2014
Reed Hollinshead
ITD Communication
208-334-8881
reed.hollinshead@itd.idaho.gov
U.S. 95 Boundary County bridge construction to start mid-June
BONNERS FERRY - Crews will begin construction June 16 on U.S. 95 bridges in Boundary County – the BNSF Railroad Arizona Street and Kootenai River bridges. Construction will extend the life of the structures.
The estimated completion date for this project is Sept. 2.
Click here for a picture of the Arizona Street bridge (built in 1972), and here for a picture of the Kootenai River Bridge (built in 1984).
The work will be done in two stages: In the first stage, commuters can expect a two-way traffic shift as northbound traffic is moved to the southbound passing lane. During this time, Ash Street will be closed and traffic detoured to Arizona Street, then to Main and Kootenai streets. All other accesses will remain open.
A 10-foot width restriction will be in place for oversized loads during the traffic shift, and lengths will be limited to normal, non-permitted legal lengths.
On the Arizona Street Overhead, the contractor will resurface and seal the bridge deck with a silica fume concrete. Guardrail and the steel girders underneath the bridge also will be repainted.
At the same time, the Kootenai River Bridge will receive an epoxy overlay to provide an impermeable seal and extend the life of the bridge deck. Also being completed will be a finger-joint modification to eliminate bumps on either side of the bridge.
After the work is completed on the northbound lanes of both bridges, traffic will be shifted to the northbound lanes, also in a two-lane configuration. This will be the beginning of the second stage, during which the construction process will be repeated on the southbound lanes.
During part of Stage Two, Main Street will close and traffic will be detoured to Kootenai Street, and Chinook Street will detour to Comanche Street. At this time, Ash Street will reopen.
At the end of each stage, a limited amount of paving will be done on either side of both bridges. Asphalt paving is typical on bridge rehabilitation projects to provide a smoother transition to the new bridge surface. Similar projects are being performed throughout the Idaho to extend the life of our bridges.
Braun-Jensen Inc., of Payette, is the contractor on this $2.1 million project.