Barbur Blvd. bridges, Iowa Street viaduct both now complete

Oregon Department of Transportation sent this bulletin at 11/28/2014 02:16 PM PST

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Nov. 28, 2014

Contacts:

Don Hamilton, ODOT

503-731-8265 (o) 503-704-7452 (m)

 

Iowa Street viaduct, Barbur Blvd. bridges complete

 

ODOT has finished work on two major projects aimed at improving safety on two highway corridors in Southwest Portland.

 

Both the Iowa Street Viaduct Project on Interstate 5 and the Newbury and Vermont Street Bridge Rehabilitation Project on Barbur Boulevard, OR 99W, just south of Capitol Highway, were completed in November. Both projects were aimed at upgrading deteriorating sections of the aging highway infrastructure.

The Iowa Street Viaduct Project. The project, which started in 2010, replaced 57-year-old viaducts at milepost 298, just north of the Terwilliger Curves. The new viaducts meet today’s roadway and seismic standards and improved safety on I-5 by adding wider shoulders, wider center medians and higher concrete barriers.

The previous viaducts were in severe disrepair and did not meet today’s seismic lifeline standards required in the effort to keep I-5 functional after a severe earthquake.

The project included renovations to the Southwest Trail 3 section under Barbur Boulevard and I-5, which will be maintained by the Portland Bureau of Parks and Recreation.

For more information, go to www.oregon.gov/odot/hwy/region1/iowaviaduct.

The Newbury Street and Vermont Street Rehabilitation Project . The two Southwest Barbur Boulevard bridges were built in 1934 across two ravines. Both bridges were deteriorating and in need of repair.

Water had been seeping inside the bridge joints, which caused the steel rebar inside the deck to rust. Without the upgrade, the bridges would have been subject to weight restrictions, which would have excluded heavy vehicles, including trucks and TriMet buses.

The project, which started in June, repaired the concrete deck of both bridges at the bridge joints and improved drainage, improved the ramps leading to the walkways, installed two flashing bicycles on roadway beacons, and installed a taller safety railing.

For more information, go to www.barburbridges.org.

 ##ODOT##