LAKE STEVENS – State Department of Transportation work crews have completed about 65 percent of the work to upgrade Highway 92 between Highway 9 and Granite Falls.

Crews will continue to work through the winter doing some planting, but the heavier work, such as adding turn lanes and paving, will wait for warmer weather in the spring, state project engineer Amir Ahmadi said.

The good news is that the $5.9 million project is within its bid and ahead of schedule. A full closure of part of the road in August lasted 20 days – a day less than anticipated.

“They worked very diligently to get to that,” Ahmadi said.

The highway is the main transportation corridor to Everett and areas north and south from Lake Stevens, Granite Falls and farther east. To avoid major problems during weekday commutes, the state did much of the work at night.

The project will improve nearly six miles of the highway, from Highway 9 to 84th Street NE. That includes three intersections: 99th Avenue NE, 113th Avenue NE and 147th Avenue NE, adding turn lanes, bus pullouts, landscaping and guardrails.

Most recently, crews put in a new road at 147th Avenue NE and paved part of it, although the final layers must wait for warmer weather, Ahmadi said. When the project is completed, one portion of 147th will be a cul-de-sac and a new 147th also will be opened.

Crews will landscape the area of 99th Avenue beginning about Nov. 1, as well as in a wetland mitigation area, which will require some minor regrading, then fencing. The planting window is November to February.

“This is pretty much the only work that is going to get done this season,” Ahmadi said.

In the spring, crews will begin adding the last layers of paving to 147th and add striping, and will widen 99th Avenue NE and add turn lanes.

At 127th Drive NE, crews will install painted islands to direct motorists to make only right turns onto Highway 92. They’ll add bus pullouts on both sides of 127th and 147th Drive NE. Highway 92 eastbound will have three lanes at 147th, and westbound will have two lanes. Crews also will add guardrails and better lighting.

“That pretty much wraps up the project,” Ahmadi said.

Reporter Cathy Logg: 425-339-3437 or logg@heraldnet.com.