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<< Previous   of   Next >> (click to enlarge)   ADVERTISEMENT   CONTACT THE HERALD Robert Frank, City Editor frank@heraldnet.com   Published: Tuesday, July 1, 2008 Straighter path open for drivers on Highway 9 By Yoshiaki Nohara Herald Writer ARLINGTON -- Drivers will now face an easier and perhaps safer commute along Highway 9 north of Arlington after crews replaced a curvy segment of the road with a new straight stretch. The sharp curves used to cut through farmland between Schloman* Road and 252nd Street NE. In winter, icy spots created havoc on the shady road. "It was very dangerous," said Dave Murray, a project inspector for the state Department of Transportation. State data shows that 49 collisions occurred along that stretch of the highway between 2003 and 2007, said Aurora Jones, a spokeswoman for the transportation department. Forty-four people were injured in those accidents. Workers took advantage of the balmy weather over the weekend to open the new stretch of the highway. The work required drivers to detour to I-5 between Friday night and Monday afternoon. No major traffic backups were reported over the weekend, Murray said. About 10,000 vehicles use that stretch of the highway daily on average, Jones said. That's up from about 7,600 vehicles in 2005. The new segment of the highway runs straight and goes up and down gradually. Crews used more than 180,000 cubic yards of gravel to build up part of a gully and create the new stretch of the road, Murray said. They also built a new bridge over a creek so fish can migrate below. "I've been doing this for 23 years," Murray said. "This has been a challenge. There's been many environmental issues." The $20.7 million project, mostly funded by a 2003 gas tax hike, is expected to wrap up this fall. The project stretches over about three miles between Scholman Road and 268th Street St. NE, including the new segment that opened Monday. "Despite challenges, this has been a great project. It's been on schedule all the time," Jones said. This summer, crews plan to create new turn lanes along the highway at the intersections of 252nd Street NE and 268th Street NE. They are also set to replace a culvert to improve fish passage at Kackman Creek. Another major project is taking place along Highway 9 south of Snohomish. Many drivers use the highway as an alternative to I-5. In April, the state started improving safety and traffic flow along the highway between Marsh Road and 176th Street SE. The $53.4 million project, funded by gas-tax hikes in 2003 and 2005, includes widening the highway from two to four lanes between Highway 96 to Marsh Road east of Mill Creek. Reporter Yoshiaki Nohara: 425-339-3029 or ynohara@heraldnet.com. *Correction, July , 2008: This article originally misspelled the name of Schloman Road.

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