The city of Vancouver on Monday will kick off a project that will remake a series of intersections along Southeast 164th Avenue.
Crews will move south to north, upgrading six intersections from Southeast 34th Street to Mill Plain Boulevard. The work is expected to last until August, after which 164th Avenue will be repaved along the same stretch.
Several changes will be made at each intersection, including new or extended turn lanes, new signal poles and new signal controllers to improve coordination of traffic lights. Crews also will upgrade pedestrian curb ramps to bring them in line with federal accessibility standards.
“We’re just kind of cleaning up some stuff,” Ryan Knox, a city construction engineer, said. “And hopefully, it will be better for everybody.”
In addition to the 34th Street and Mill Plain intersections, workers will tackle four other junctions with 164th Avenue: McGillivray Boulevard, Village Loop-Southeast 20th Street, Southeast 15th Street, and Tech Center Drive-Southeast 12th Street.
Vancouver-based Rotschy Inc. will take on the intersection improvements under a $1.86 million contract. The late-summer paving work will be completed under a separate contract, Knox said.
Work will take place between 7 a.m. and 5 p.m. on weekdays, according to the city. Some weekend and night work also might be necessary.
Drivers should expect delays and lane closures during the work, though the city will restrict lane closures to nonpeak travel hours along 164th Avenue. Pedestrians and bicyclists also are advised to slow and be careful in the construction zone, according to the city.
