Seward Highway Construction to Continue Through Fall

Commuters on the Seward Highway may be enduring long wait times during construction windows throughout the fall. (Photo by Jon. Scudder)

By Soren Wuerth

TNews Editor

For local Seward Hwy. commuters enduring longish wait times during construction windows: get used to it. 

Construction along the highway will continue through November only to resume in May, according to the state transportation department. 

The work, a "pavement preservation project", will not be finished until next summer, DOT spokesperson Justin Shelby wrote in an email.

Traffic along the Seward stalls nightly at 8 p.m. to wait for a pilot truck. By 6 a.m. the following morning paving crews from contractor Granite Construction were wrapping up work. 

Though the sight of a giant, lighted, US flag-spiked paving machine may show an obvious highway upgrade, other features of the work may go unnoticed.  

"One notable improvement that may not be visible to the traveling public is repair work at the coastal ends of dozens of culverts that go under the highway. The coastal ends of these culverts were found to be deteriorating due to tidal action and pressure," Shelby said.

Construction on the highway also involved creating a turn lane for the McHugh Creek recreational area, work that wrapped up this summer; as well as work stabilizing slopes to prevent falling rocks and ice, work that will continue into next summer, according to Shelby.

DOT relaxed construction work on the highway in July to accommodate seasonal traffic with "more substantial" work that began in August, Shelby said.

Work on the Gird-to-Bird bike trail will also continue through the rest of fall and "likely into portions of next spring", he wrote.

"The pathway is being improved in response to several areas that have experienced landslides over the past several years, as well as locations where saturated subgrade caused significant deterioration. 

"Those areas are being excavated and reconstructed with improved ditching and drainage to better convey water away from the pathway," Shelby said in the email.

"Shuttle transportation is being provided to assist pathway users around the work zone during closures scheduled for September 8-11 and 14-18. There is no avalanche mitigation included in this paving project."

Travelers should check Alaska 511 for current traffic impacts and construction updates. 

Travelers should check Alaska 511 for current traffic impacts and construction updates. (Photo by Jon Scudder)