Drivers asked to use caution, stay focused through the construction area at Raging River while twin cranes complete lift on west side of highway
SNOQUALMIE – People traveling on State Route 18 south of the city of Snoqualmie Tuesday morning, March 26, likely will notice twin cranes lifting massive support beams into place on each end of a future bridge. Four concrete girders will be hoisted and set atop columns rising more than 50 feet above Raging River, creating part of the support structure for a new two-lane bridge being built just west of the existing one.
Most of the work will happen from 8 a.m. to noon. People driving through the worksite are urged to slow down, remain focused on the road and follow instructions from road crews, but no long-term lane closures are expected. Travelers may see trucks with the girder sections and the cranes lifting them high in the sky before settling them into place.
The four precast concrete girders, each 105 feet long and about 5 feet tall, will be set by two large hydraulic cranes. Each girder section weighs more than 51 tons, or about as much as an adult blue whale.
Improving safety and traffic flow
The I-90/SR 18 interchange improvements project is being built by design-builder Aecon, working for the Washington State Department of Transportation to improve traffic flow and safety through the busy corridor.
The project includes building a diverging diamond interchange, widening 2 miles of SR 18 and adding a second two-lane bridge over Raging River, which will soon carry westbound SR 18 traffic, next to the existing bridge. In addition, two new four-lane bridges – one at Deep Creek and one at Lake Creek – are being built and six barriers to fish passage will be removed.
The $190 million I-90/SR 18 improvements project is fully funded through preexisting gas tax funds and the 2015 Connecting Washington transportation fund. The project is expected to finish in 2025.
Real-time traffic information is available on the WSDOT travel map or the WSDOT app and social media accounts.