City crews put the finishing touches on the formerly disintegrating intersection of Northeast Fremont Street and 122nd Avenue, which is part of the 122nd Avenue Safety Improvement project. The project includes flashing crosswalk beacons, new sidewalks and repaving from Northeast San Rafael Street to Shaver Street. STAFF/2017
You aren’t the only one consumed with spring cleaning. This April has not been the sunniest for the Portland Bureau of Transportation and their many road projects; fortunately, summer is on the horizon. Per usual, the weather has left PBOT slogging away on its big-budget aspirations, including road paving and pothole fillings.
Much of this work is reliant on dry days. Below is a quick update on a couple of major projects formerly discussed by the Memo (“122nd Avenue road repairs update” MCM April 2017).
Northeast 102nd Avenue Project
The Northeast 102nd Avenue Project, which affects the span of road from East Burnside to Halsey streets, is designed to provide this popular five-lane road with new and improved sidewalks as well as updated ramps (the current ones fail to meet Americans with Disabilities Act standards). As with most PBOT projects, safety and accessibility are at the forefront of the improvements.
April’s relentless showers have majorly slowed this project, which possesses a budget of $199,000. PBOT is holding off on paving roads until there is a forecasted cluster of three to five dry days during which work can be completed consecutively. In the meantime, unsteady pavement has called for the implementation of many “SLOW” signs along the street. Additionally, there are “BUMP” signs designated at various busy transition points meant to slow north and south traffic.
PBOT crews are busy sweeping Northeast 102nd Avenue twice a week, which helps in preparing treacherous slivers of road for immediate repaving, as well as pothole identification.
The Northeast 102nd Avenue Project is expected to reach completion before the end of the year.
Northeast 122nd Avenue Paving
The large-scale $3.7 million Northeast 122nd Avenue project also carries on. Its tasks include a three-inch grind and three-inch pavement inlay, reconstruction of corners to meet contemporary ADA standards, traffic signal improvements and new crash barriers designed to protect the columns of the I-84 overpass. And of course, there will be extensive grinding and paving.
As with Northeast 102nd Avenue, all road paving is contingent on dry weather, and all improvements will be made at night over three to four total nights. Weather has slowed progress, so intermittent lane closures are a threat throughout the day.
All in all, the paving job should be complete by May 2017.
