Parks Highway paving, bridge projects highlight upcoming season

WASILLA — An early spring has translated into an accelerated construction season for state transportation projects, and a big one is slated to kick off next week.

Construction will begin April 23 on paving and bridge work from Mile 35 to Mile 40 of the Parks Highway, part of a larger project that also will encompass work on the Glenn-Parks interchange.

The project had a May 2 start date, which was already early, but the warm and dry spring moved things up even more, state Department of Transportation project engineer Pat Harvey.

“We bumped up the start date and with the compressed schedule the contractor has, things should move along pretty well,” Harvey said of the $13.9 million project. He added that the contract calls for work to be complete by August. Quality Asphalt Paving is the primary contractor.

According to the DOT, the first phase of the work gets started April 23, with northbound Parks Highway lane closures from just north of the Trunk Road interchange to west of the Seward Meridian Parkway overpass. Northbound traffic will be routed onto the southbound lane, an alignment that will be in place on a seven-day, 24-hour schedule until paving and bridge work is complete. Bridge construction will involve the replacement of expansion joints and the installation of new waterproof membranes, Harvey said.

“The paving will occur at night so the (asphalt) trucks aren’t running through town during the day,” Harvey said. “The work along there will be almost constant.”

Harvey said while the northbound lanes are closed, both the Seward Meridian Parkway and Hyer Road southbound on-ramps will be closed as well.

“Also a 45 mile-per-hour speed limit will be posted in the entire construction zone,” Harvey said. “So, drivers leaving Wasilla will stay at 45 all the way until it opens up again (near Trunk.)”

Once the northbound work is complete, work will shift to the southbound lanes, with the same pattern of opposing-lane traffic.

Harvey acknowledged a fair amount of congestion and delays will occur, especially during rush hour.

“We are just asking folks to be patient — I think drivers will see some real progress as things move along,” Harvey said. “The northbound closure should last about three weeks, then we’ll switch to the southbound and that will take probably four (weeks.)”

Harvey urged drivers to look for alternate routes like the two-way frontage roads Blue Lupine Drive and Fireweed Road, or even using Trunk, Seward Meridian and the Palmer-Wasilla Highway.

“We are hopeful people can find some ways around it,” Harvey said.

Once the Mile 35-40 project is complete, crews will move farther south on the Parks Highway between Trunk Road and just south of the Glenn-Parks interchange, where alternate lane closures will be in effect. The final piece of the project will be improvements to the Glenn-Parks interchange ramps.

“Once it’s all done, there is going to be some smooth sailing on the new surfaces,” Harvey said.

To follow the progress of the project and sign up for email alerts, visit the DOT Alaska Navigator site at www.alaskanavigator.org or call the project hotline at 232-5473.

Contact reporter Steven Merritt at 352-2269 or steven.merritt@frontiersman.com