IMCO GENERAL CONSTRUCTION BEGINS WORK ON THIRD AND FINAL PHASE OF WSDOT’S $220 MILLION I-90 TWO-WAY TRANSIT AND HOV OPERATIONS PROJECT
IMCO PRESS RELEASE
IMCO PRESS RELEASE
FERNDALE, WA FEBRUARY 2015.
For traffic alerts on ths project, please visit the WSDOT project page here.
This weekend, IMCO General Construction will begin work on a major, federally funded highway project in Seattle, Washington valued at over $120 Million. The entire I-90 Two-Way Transit and HOV Operations Project is a $220 Million project being administered by the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT). The project is being funded by WSDOT, Sound Transit, and the Federal Transit Administration. It will bring significant improvements to regional mobility as it is adding HOV lanes and direct-access ramps for transit and HOVs on Mercer Island and in Bellevue. A major component is infrastructure needed to build the Sound Transit East Link light rail extension from Seattle to Mercer Island, Bellevue, and Redmond.
The WSDOT website says, “The project will improve on-time reliability and access for transit and HOVs on I-90. With new direct-access ramps, carpools, vanpools and buses will access the freeway directly to or from HOV lanes without merging through lanes of traffic. Traffic on the outer roadway will be smoother and safer for everyone. The project also prepares the center roadway for Sound Transit's 14-mile East Link light rail extension from Seattle to Redmond.” (http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/Projects/I90/TwoWayTransit/#stage3)
The project is being implemented in stages due to timing and availability of funding. The first phase was completed in 2008 and the second phase was completed in 2012. The third and final phase was partially funded by a federal TIGER Grant, the US Department of Transportation’s Investment Generating Economic Recovery grant program (http://www.dot.gov/tiger).
IMCO General Construction was prequalified to bid this project in September 2014, submitted a bid electronically on October 29th, and was the lowest of four bidders. IMCO will oversee construction that prepares the I-90 tunnels for the Sound Transit light rail to pass through them starting in 2020. Work includes adding an HOV lane in each direction between Mercer Island and Seattle, and preserving pavement in both directions, from I-5 across Lake Washington to Bellevue. The project builds an eastbound HOV direct-access exit ramp at Island Crest Way on Mercer Island and upgrades the I-90 tunnels’ fire and life safety systems. This project will include lane closures and weekend closures in both directions throughout the project. All closures will be planned for in advance and scheduled through WSDOT and local officials to ensure proper notice is given to the traveling public. Construction is starting Friday with a weekend closure of eastbound I-90 over Lake Washington. The project will be complete on June 1st, 2017 in time to start construction on the East Link light rail across the lake. [k1]
IMCO has a history of working with WSDOT on large transportation projects (http://www.imcoconstruction.com). In 2009 IMCO completed work on the nearly $35 Million SR-543, I-5 to International Boundary Widening and Border Crossing Improvements, which involved reconstruction of truck crossing lanes at the border in Blaine, Washington, and also the $35 Million SR-539, Horton Road to Ten Mile Road Widen to Five Lanes project working to widen and provide added infrastructure to five lanes of SR-539 in Whatcom County, Washington. In 2014, IMCO was one of the first responders after the devastating Oso mudslide near Arlington, Washington and contracted with WSDOT and Snohomish County on three separate projects to help with search and recovery, debris removal, and uncovering of the highway that was covered by the slide.
“This job is a very complicated retrofit of the Mt. Baker and Mercer Island I-90 tunnels and fits what IMCO does very well.”– Tyler Kimberley, President, IMCO General Construction, Inc.
IMCO CONTACT.
Ashley Kimberley, Director of Marketing
IMCO General Construction, Inc.
Cell: 206-902-7606
Corporate: 360-671-3936
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