Dear Public Works Department,
I am sure that I am not alone in expressing my outrage at how the Mount Baker Road project is being handled.
For reasons that do not appear to make any sense the contractor doing the work tore off the surface of the corner with North Beach Road. I am confidant that resurfacing the corner was in the specifications but to tear off the surface leaving a rutted unpaved situation for two or three months is the height of unprofessionalism. Three-quarters of this corner are handling hundreds of cars a day. The corner is rutted not to mention that there is probably some law being violated by the amount of dust in the air.
I spoke to professionals who do road work and I was told that the corner should be watered down. What is the point of taking the low bid if crappy execution is what you get. The County should order the resurfacing of this corner NOW. The contractor should be held responsible for his poor judgment.
On another note, where are the left turn lanes at Country Corner, Washington Federal and the North Beach interchange? Also why isn’t the corner of North Beach being lowered to improve the sight lines?
Harvey Aldort
I live on Mt Baker Rd along the construction project.
Both the county public works dep’t, and the contractor, have behaved in a very helpful and professional manner.
The flaggers are efficient, and the machine operators courteous. The project appears to be progressing rapidly.
Yes, there’s some dust. What do you expect, it’s a road construction project.
For years, I have not been able to easily see oncoming traffic when exiting my driveway. The new road contour will solve this dangerous situation.
I have never been involved in a county road project, but I have worked in logistically challenging projects involving managing the flow of people and traffic through a job site. It is one of the most challenging situations you can deal with as a contractor: Protecting the public while doing the job you have been contracted to do. I am sure that as the intersection at North Beach Road needs work, the contractor will make efforts to keep it open and passable. Until then, the bright orange BUMP signs seem an appropriate warning for those who choose to read them.
I take exception with the insinuation that the contractor on this project has done anything “crappy”. Based on my reading of the plans and specifications that were presented to the public at numerous meetings and presentations it appears that the work is being done according to plan. The biggest issue really seems to be that far too many people continue to use the road for through access rather than respecting the area for local use only. I too, am guilty of using the road to access Buck Park, when it would be far more beneficial to the crew on site for me to park at the school and walk to the park. Despite my obvious violations, the flaggers have remained friendly and professional with myself and all of the other cars that I have seen.
Based on my experience with projects governed by the NPEDS regulations and DOE stormwater regulations the level of dust on the site does not appear to me to rise to the level of a violation. The BMP’s for construction appear to be properly in place, and the work appears to be adequately protecting the adjacent properties.
To make a short story long – I hope the contractor and their workers don’t waste their time responding to unreasonable and unsubstantiated claims and instead focus on getting the job done to the best of their abilities.
I agree with you Justin. Harvey, may I suggest a simple solution…..don’t use the area, go around and if your going to the dog park…ok park your car somewhere else and walk there. Dont like the dust wait till they are done to use the dog park….simple solutions to your problems are better than calling a company that is doing the best they can.
My garden space is near Opalco on Mount Baker Road, so I must travel it frequently. Agreed, the dust is a big problem, and I am loving this rain! But, it’s not the road crew (always helpful and professional) or the project itself that troubles me; in fact, I prefer driving the road when crews are there because I feel protected. What troubles me are the inconsiderate, speeding drivers of trucks and large vehicles who speed along the road as if it were an ORV thrill trail, mindless of the fact that they are throwing dust and gravel into someone’s windshield and possibly breaking it, while speeding by and bearing no responsibility for repairing the damages. It’s this kind of behavior that causes accidents on our roads, and I fear that no amount of widening will change the behavior of these drivers. To those who drive this road during the long project: Please be courteous of other drivers in our small economy cars, and SLOW DOWN when approaching vehicles coming from the other direction! If you are usually in a hurry, perhaps leaving your house 5 minutes earlier will solve your need to speed.
I do have several questions for the Mt. Baker Project engineers. I notice that there is a lot of pooling of water along the north side of the road near the cemetary, and I worry that the trees there, which are now underwater all the time since this project started, will drown. Do you plan to build French Drains, culverts or some other drainage system to take care of the trapped water? Is there budget enough to keep these culverts monitored and maintained and silt free? If not, will you replace the trees that are lost? Thank you for answering this question.