Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) has appointed Kiewit Infrastructure West to remove 聽the viaduct,聽 decommission the Battery Street Tunnel and reconnect city surface streets just north of聽 the nearly complete State Route 99 tunnel. The tunnel鈥檚 construction was delayed by problems with Bertha, the tunnel boring machine used to build it.
Kiewit鈥檚 design-build contract was the 鈥榓pparent best value鈥� bid for the project, representing a聽 combination of points received for the technical proposal and the price.
鈥淲e are excited to be so close to removing the seismically vulnerable viaduct and ushering in a new era on Seattle鈥檚 waterfront,鈥� said Brian聽 Nielsen, WSDOT鈥檚 Alaskan Way Viaduct replacement program administrator.聽 鈥淚t will be challenging to tear down a major highway in the heart of a booming city but we鈥檙e looking forward to getting it done safely and as quickly as possible.鈥澛�
Timelines for the work will emerge after the contract is finalised and the contractor receives approval to begin design work. 聽
Based on the tunnel contractor鈥檚 current schedule, WSDOT anticipates the new SR 99 tunnel could open as soon as this fall. Before the tunnel opens, WSDOT must permanently close the Alaskan Way聽 Viaduct to realign SR 99 and the ramps at the tunnel portals. After the viaduct permanently closes, contractors could begin limited demolition work in late 2018; the majority of viaduct demolition work will occur in 2019.
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