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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: September 14, 2012
No.: 12-2584
Contact: Meadow Bailey, (907) 451-2240 or Meadow.Bailey@Alaska.Gov

DOT&PF to Open Illinois Street Fall 2012

(FAIRBANKS, ALASKA) — The Department of Transportation and Public Facilities (DOT&PF) is accelerating seasonal work on the Illinois Street Reconstruction project to open the Barnette Street Bridge and accommodate southbound traffic by mid-November.
When seasonal work is complete this fall, Illinois Street, from the Barnette Street Bridge to the Noyes Slough Bridge, will be open and permanent traffic patterns will be in place. Northbound traffic will travel over the Cushman Street Bridge onto Illinois Street. Southbound traffic will travel along Illinois Street over the Barnette Street Bridge onto Barnette Street.

This fall DOT&PF will install traffic signal systems, complete five intersections, begin replacing Noyes Slough Bridge, pave, finish pedestrian and bike paths and striping.

The public can expect:

  • Pile driving to begin at Noyes Slough Bridge on Friday, Sept. 14. Hours of operation will be 7 a.m.-5:30 p.m., seven days a week, for two to three weeks. This work will not affect pedestrians and drivers. Businesses and residents in the vicinity will be hear the pile driving. DOT&PF asks for the public’s patience while it completes this portion of the project.
  • Curb, gutter and paving at 1st Avenue and Cushman Street, Phillips Field Road and Doyon Street.
  • Continued activity at Minnie Street while the waterline is completed.
  • Work at intersections to install signal poles.
  • Traffic on Illinois Street will remain open to northbound traffic.

HC Contractors, Inc., of North Pole, started work on the $22 million Illinois Street Reconstruction project in April 2012.

Items to be completed in 2013 include replacing the Noyes Slough Bridge, landscaping and the pedestrian and bike path along the Chena River. When the project is complete, improvements on Illinois Street will accommodate long-term growth with a safer route for vehicles, pedestrians and cyclists.

The Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities oversees 255 airports, 11 ferries serving 35 communities, 5,619 miles of highway and 720 public facilities throughout the state of Alaska. The mission of the department is to “Get Alaska Moving through service and infrastructure.”

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