Work that began just two weeks ago to repave NE 125th Street is already showing results (the good kind, I mean). Besides the necessary but not so welcome barricades, with some keeping traffic from heading east up NE 125th to Sand Point Way, there’s also newly ADA-compliant sidewalks gracing the NE 125th St/35th Ave NE intersection…
New sidewalk and curb ramp on the southeast corner of the NE 125th Street and 35th Avenue NE intersection
Curb ramps will be upgraded as part of the project, making for a smoother and safer pedestrian experience. On NE 125th Street & Roosevelt Way NE there are a large number of curb ramps to be installed. The contractor plans to work on the north side of NE 125th Street first, all along the way, installing or replacing curb ramps at the same time as the road base is repaired. While this work is underway, alternative ramps (you may see black asphalt ramps appear for a few days) will be provided for pedestrian use.
Speaking of that Zone 3 detour, that takes eastbound NE 125th traffic to southbound 35th Avenue NE and then eastbound NE 110th, it’s expected to remain in place through July 3, 2013. Keeping traffic from going up that hill will help crews finish the work on Sand Point Way NE between NE 40th and 110th streets (Zone 3) in less than a month – assuming the weather cooperates. That’s the fastest completion time of all five zones in the project, with the others each expected to be around six weeks.
Detours will be needed again by the way, for Sand Point Way NE soutbound traffic, when crews get to Zone 4 and Zone 5, so be ready. That’s because the roadway is too narrow to accomodate crews working on half of it as well as two directions of traffic.
The entire project runs from Sand Point Way NE and NE 77th Street, along Sand Point Way, to Roosevelt Way NE and NE 125th Street. Construction is expected to be complete by the end of the year. All along the route you’ll see orange netting “cages” protecting trees, like this one shown at left.
You’ll also see bus stop access points changed. Metro Transit route 75 and south-bound bus stops will be affected by detours. Please refer to http://metro.kingcounty.gov/ridertools/ to obtain service change alerts.
That’s the update for now! Be safe, and if you have project concerns, please call Alex DeLeon at (206) 316-2542 or stop by Kaffeeklatsch – 12513 Lake City Way – on Wednesdays in June, between 4PM and 5PM. That’s where Alex will be posted and available to chat about the project.