Contractors will begin making improvements to 120th Avenue Northeast between Northeast Seventh and 12th streets on Monday, September 15. The city is widening the street to five lanes and adding bike lanes and sidewalks as part of a project to improve mobility and accommodate growth in the corridor.
This is the second stage of the 120th Avenue Northeast corridor project. The first stage, from the 300 block (just south of Northeast Fourth Street) to just south of Northeast Eighth Street, is in its final weeks of construction.
Drivers should expect intermittent lane closures, but two-way traffic and pedestrian access will be maintained during construction. Access to local businesses will be maintained through the duration of Stage II, tentatively scheduled for completion in late 2016.
Stage II will widen the existing roadway of 120th Avenue Northeast between Northeast Seventh and Northeast 12th streets to five lanes, with a center-turn lane where necessary. It will include bike lanes and sidewalk on both sides of the road, landscaping, street lighting, a new traffic signal at the intersection of 120th Avenue Northeast and Lake Bellevue Drive/Old Bel-Red Road and modification of the two existing traffic signals at Northeast Eighth Street and Northeast 12th streets. Additionally, the project will stabilize soft soils between Lake Bellevue Drive and Northeast 12th Street, construct a joint utility trench and provide new sewer and water systems throughout the corridor.
Work on this project will be phased into three work zones. The first work zone will take place from Northeast Seventh Street to Old Bel-Red Road. Work zones two and three will occur from Old Bel-Red Road to Northeast 12th Street, east side and west side, respectively. Private utility work will occur separately.
Work in work zone one is estimated to take about six months to complete, and will include activities such as underground utility work, widening on 120th Avenue Northeast and Northeast Eighth Street, construction of a retaining wall and sidewalks, curb and gutter installation. Much of the work in this zone will be concentrated at the intersection of the Northeast Eighth Street and 120th Avenue.
Standard work hours will be Monday through Friday, with daytime hours between 7 a.m. and 6 p.m. and night hours between 9 p.m. and 5 a.m. Because Northeast Eighth carries a high volume of traffic during the day, a majority of the intersection work will take place at night. We will keep the public informed of construction activity and impacts during this two-year project. Watch for electronic message boards with pertinent construction and impact information. Obey flaggers and use caution when traveling through the work zone.