Project Overview

Washington state travelers commuting between Renton and Bellevue on Interstate 405 face one of the most challenging traffic situations in the state. The I-405 Renton to Bellevue Widening and Express Toll Lanes project is targeted to alleviate this issue. The initiative aims to enhance transportation options and safety for commuters by providing more dependable travel alternatives and ensuring smooth movement for drivers, transit users, and freight.

The Renton to Bellevue project will expand its capacity by introducing a two-lane Express Toll Lane (ETL) system stretching from SR 167 in Renton to Northeast Sixth Street in Bellevue. The project involves adding an additional lane in each direction and merging the existing High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) lane with the new lane to form a dual ETL setup.

These new lanes will seamlessly integrate with the current express toll lane network between Bellevue and Lynnwood and the SR 167 High Occupancy Toll (HOT) lanes via the I-405/SR 167 Interchange Direct Connector. This integration will result in a comprehensive 40-mile ETL system. The primary objective of this project is to enhance travel speeds and reliability for all commuters, while also facilitating the upcoming I-405 Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) line between Lynnwood and Tukwila, which is part of the voter-approved Sound Transit 3 package. The I-405 Renton to Bellevue Widening and Express Toll Lanes project is being implemented to address this issue. This initiative aims to enhance transportation options and safety for commuters by providing more dependable travel alternatives and ensuring smooth movement for drivers, transit users, and freight.

Products Supplied

Portland Bolt assisted in providing the necessary material for the retaining wall portion of this project. The anchor rods used for this were specified as ASTM F1554 Grade 36 and were provided in a galvanized finish, which we do in-house with our hot-dip galvanizing line. These anchor rods were paired with a high-strength A194-2H nut, a high-strength heavy hex coupling nut meeting ASTM A563 Grade DH, as well as a custom square plate washer meeting the requirement of A36 steel.

Manufacturing

Since this project is federally funded, everything must be 100% melted and manufactured in the USA. Because Portland Bolt partners with many companies that provide anchor bolts for Department of Transportation projects, we keep a wide variety of domestic anchor bolts on the shelf, and every item is fully certified with full mill test reports for compliance with WSDOT requirements.

References

https://www.flatironcorp.com/project/i-405-renton-to-bellevue-widening-and-express-toll-lanes/ – source

https://www.environment.fhwa.dot.gov/pubs_resources_tools/publications/case_studies/NEPA_Tolling_I-405_WA.pdf

Another phase of the connecting Arkansas Project is underway as of late 2023. The construction of the 30-crossing project started in the summer of 2020 with many different phases. The project is scheduled to facilitate access to five interstate highways and a major river crossing with heavy navigation traffic, addressing traffic congestion and incorporating various transportation modes, all within a densely populated urban region. The project involves replacing a 3,360-foot bridge spanning the Arkansas River, enhancing additional bridges along I-30, and expanding the width of I-30 in Little Rock.

This phase of the project focuses on the connection of Little Rock to North Little Rock via the I-30 westbound bridge that sits above the Arkansas River.

Over the following years from the start date in 2020, the reconstruction of the Arkansas River bridge will take place, including enhancements to the navigation channel passage. The project will also result in the addition of more lanes, a revamped interchange, the introduction of new ramps and frontage roads, and the construction of fresh bridges to facilitate improved connectivity on both sides of the interstate. Notably, in downtown Little Rock, there are plans to transform the U.S. Highway 10 interchange, which serves as the primary gateway to downtown, into a split-diamond interchange. While this transformation poses challenges for maintaining access to downtown Little Rock during the construction phase, the end result will disperse traffic entering downtown streets and create a spacious area that can be used for green space or redevelopment. North Little Rock will also witness the expansion of lanes, enhanced access through ramps and frontage roads, and improvements at roadway crossings.

Products supplied
Portland Bolt was chosen to manufacture 3,500 lbs of Various sizes of anchor rods and custom-size square plates that will be used in the upcoming phase of the construction. This being an Arkansas DOT job, all material had to be manufactured domestically to meet the requirements for the job. Both lengths of the galvanized ⅞” diameter anchor rods being used for this project met the requirement of F1554 Grade 55 and were used with ¼” x 3” galvanized A36 plates and A563-DH nuts.

In the Spring of 2015, work began on Interstate 90 spanning between Mullan, Idaho and the Montana State border.  Roadway construction began with the intent of having the westbound lanes completed by the end of 2015 and then reconstruction would begin on the eastbound lanes.    Roadway reconstruction was the main focus; however there were quite a few upgrades involved.  To minimize the amount of water build up on the surface of the road, the storm water drainage system would be upgraded as well as much needed repairs to the slopes of the roadway, which had substantial erosion damage.  All of the existing metal guardrails and all of the road sign were to be replaced as well.

Among the much needed upgrades and reconstruction was the amount of concrete barrier that needed to be replaced.  In addition, the existing barriers (the barrier wall separating the eastbound and westbound lanes) were to be replaced with taller median barrier. The long string of concrete barrier is made up of many smaller sections connected by a long headed steel pin or “barrier pin”. Although Idaho DOT has 3 different options  for the connecting pin configuration, this project required 7,300 pins with a large forged round head as opposed to a welded plate.  The standard Idaho pin dimensions for connecting barriers is 1-1/4” in diameter and 26” long.  4,600 of the required pins met the standard dimensions; however the replacement of the existing median barriers with the taller barriers required 2,700 of a custom length pin equaling 30”.  In the end, the total weight of the required pins exceeded 75,000 pounds, packaged onto 25 pallets and required transport on two full flatbed trucks.

For anyone who has traveled on the stretch of I-84 going through Cascade Locks to Hood River, knows how rough of a drive it can be, especially during the winter season. Over time, the surface of the road had developed pot holes and inconsistencies on the surface that would jar your vehicle suddenly or become a place where rain water would puddle causing treacherous conditions. As a result, Oregon Department of Transportation planned a reconstruction project spanning through 2015 and 2016. The main focus would be for the concrete barriers to be replaced followed by the repaving of the surface, taking place in the summer of 2016. In total, approximately 12 miles of center concrete barriers separating the eastbound lanes from the westbound lanes would need to be replaced.

As with any highway project requiring the replacement of concrete barrier, the barrier pins will also need to be replaced. The long string of concrete barrier that you see is made up of many smaller sections connected by a steel pin. The configuration of the ODOT connecting pin typically has a forged head on one end and is manufactured to the ASTM A449 specification. Although the standard ODOT connecting pin length is 29”, this project required that the length be a custom 32”. In total, approximately 5,300 pins were needed to complete the span. Being that the environment in the northwest is corrosive, due to the wet weather, all of the required pins were hot dip galvanized. Once all of the pins were manufactured and ready to be shipped to the jobsite, the total weight of the pins exceeded 41,000 lbs.

As part of the construction of the new North Spokane Corridor Freeway, the Washington State Department of Transportation needed to realign a section of BNSF railroad tracks that was in the path of the new freeway. In May of 2014, the contractor who had been awarded this work, and was a longtime customer of Portland Bolt, came to us with their list of bolting requirements.

Over the course of the next year Portland Bolt manufactured and shipped nine loads of anchor rods, headed anchor bolts, square plate washers, as well as coupling nuts, lock nuts, and other miscellaneous hardware. All of the items were hot dip galvanized and 100% domestic per the project requirements. The anchor rods were ASTM F1554 Grade 55 steel and varied from 4 feet to 20 feet in length. All told, Portland Bolt shipped 27,500 pounds of fasteners to the job site with full certifications and WSDOT CMO paperwork in order.

With the aid of our bolts, the contractor relocated 7.5 miles of existing rail track, built two freeway bridges, built a one mile extension of the Children of the Sun Trail, and built two pedestrian/bike trail bridges.

If your project has a domestic requirement, give us a call and we will get you the bolts you need, when you need them, with all of the documentation in order. Our experienced team of salespeople is ready to help!

When a steel fabricator in Missouri needed some special domestically manufactured anchor rods for sign structures on a highway project in Vermont, they turned to Portland Bolt. The project called for A193 grade B8 class 2 stainless steel anchor rods. Portland Bolt supplied 3,000 pounds of domestic rods, nuts, and lock washers for this project.

Portland Bolt has a tremendous amount of experience working with State Departments of Transportation throughout the United States and provides 100% domestically manufactured products for all federally funded highway projects.  We email your test reports when your order ships so that they are available for the DOT inspector before your bolts arrive. In addition to anchor bolts for overhead sign structures, Portland Bolt provides concrete median barrier pins, structural bolts for bridges, anchor bolts for bridge rail, and anchor bolts for light poles and traffic signal poles. We are preapproved in many states that require preapproval including PennDOT.