| Closed-loop signals improve traffic flow at bridge construction sites |
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| ODOT News - Region 5 |
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June 9, 2009
JOHN DAY, Ore. — To increase traffic flow and decrease driver wait times, a contractor of the Oregon Department of Transportation is using closed-loop signals to control alternating one-way traffic at bridge construction sites along U.S. 395, Highway 19 and U.S. 26.
“In-ground sensors will detect when a car is present and if no other vehicles are crossing the bridge, the light will change to green,” said ODOT Public Information Officer Tom Strandberg. “The original plan was to use timer controlled signals, but this system will keep traffic moving and help reduce driver frustration.”
The sensors also detect when a vehicle or vehicles have crossed the bridge to ensure that the highway is clear before the alternating signal turns green. The closed-loop temporary traffic signals will operate 24 hours a day during the multi-year bridge replacement project.
Wildish Standard Paving Co., based in Eugene, Ore., is the lead contractor for a bundle of eight bridges between Pendleton and Burns. Beginning June 9 drivers will encounter alternating one-way traffic at the following bridges:
Camas Creek Bridge at milepost 60.9-B and the N. Fork John Day River (Dale) Bridge at milepost 63.8-B on U.S. 395, located south of Ukiah. Traffic is expected to switch to alternating one-way traffic June 9 at these two work zones. Work will continue through 2011.
Goose Rock Bridge at milepost 119.6 on Oregon Highway 19, located 11 miles west of Dayville. Expect alternating one-way traffic by June 12. Work will continue through 2011.
Coles Bridge at milepost 155.8 on U.S. 26, located 1.2 miles east of Mount Vernon. Expect alternating one-way traffic by June 12. Work will continue through 2010.
At each bridge site, the travel lane will be 16 feet wide; no oversize loads will be permitted. In order to maintain traffic over the structures, the bridge replacement work will be performed in stages and take about three years to complete. Motorists are asked to plan for delays, drive with extra care and obey the temporary traffic signals during the construction work.
This work is part of the Oregon Department of Transportation’s $44.6 million McKay Creek to Silvies Slough Project that repairs or replaces eight bridges along U.S. 395 and other routes in eastern Oregon to ensure continued safety and mobility. Wildish has established a toll-free number to hear public concerns about the construction project: 1-877-WSTP-414.
##ODOT##
The OTIA III State Bridge Delivery Program is part of the Oregon Department of Transportation’s 10-year, $3 billion Oregon Transportation Investment Act. OTIA funds are repairing or replacing hundreds of bridges, paving and maintaining city and county roads, improving and expanding interchanges, adding new capacity to Oregon’s highway system and removing freight bottlenecks statewide. Based on 2008 dollars, about 14 family-wage jobs are sustained for every $1 million spent on transportation construction in Oregon. Each year during the remainder of the OTIA program, we estimate that construction projects will sustain an average of 4,100 family-wage jobs
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