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Pacific Northwest 23, November 17, 2024

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PACIFIC NORTHWEST EDITION

A Supplement to:

®

November 17 2024 Vol. VIII • No. 23

“The Nation’s Best Read Construction Newspaper… Founded in 1957.” Your Pacific Northwest Connection – Sharon Swanson – 1-760-518-4336 – sswanson@cegltd.com

Puget Sound’s SR 520: One Project Begins as Another Ends By Lori Tobias CEG CORRESPONDENT In Puget Sound’s busiest transportation corridor, one major bridge project is ending as another, even bigger operation, gets underway. Crews for Graham Construction & Engineering Inc. are putting the final touches on the $485 million Washington Department of Transportation (WSDOT) State Route 520 Montlake Project, designed to bolster transportation safety while bridging communities. Meanwhile, designer-builder Skanska is beginning work on the $1.375 billion SR 520 Portage Bay and Roanoke Lid Project, the final piece of WSDOT’s SR 520 Bridge Replacement and HOV Program. Under construction since 2019, the SR 520 Montlake Project replaced an old, seismically vulnerable four-lane approach bridge with a new three-lane structure dedicated to carrying eastbound traffic from Montlake to the floating bridge over Lake Washington, WSDOT Communications Manager Steve Peer said. The project also included a “comsee PUGET page 6

Crews drive one of the casings that will provide underground support for the eastbound SR 520 bridge between the shores of Montlake and the floating bridge.

ODOT Reports Progress On Van Buren Bridge; Eight Support Pillars in Place Crews remove a truss from the original Van Buren Bridge.

The Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) announced on Oct. 23, 2024, that improvements to the Van Buren Bridge near Corvallis are proceeding, with crews recently completing the deep foundation shafts. Of the eight concrete pillars that

will support the bridge on Oregon Route 34 over the Willamette River, four go about 70 ft. into the ground, but the other four are in the water and reach depths of more than 220- to 245-ft. to reach solid rock. “That’s almost as tall as the Statue of Liberty,” according to the ODOT

release. “Altogether, these pillars use nearly 500,000 pounds of rebar and hundreds of cubic yards of concrete. Talk about a solid foundation.” “There are always some complications in any construction project,” ODOT Public Information Officer see BRIDGE page 10


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