Congestion Relief Project Phase I nears completion
BATTLE GROUND — Work on Phase I of Battle Ground’s SR-502/503 Congestion Relief Project is drawing to a conclusion this week as work progresses with traffic signal revisions along Main Street and barrier installation on SR-503 near Fred Meyer.
Phase I of the Congestion Relief Project will change the flow of traffic in and out of the Battle Ground Fred Meyer complex. When the shopping center was completed in 1999, a traffic signal was installed at the intersection of 12th Avenue and Main Street to create access to the store. When the signal was installed, it was known that as the city grew, it would increase congestion, and Phase I of the project is designed to reduce congestion associated with that intersection.
Throughout the summer and fall, NW 5th Way, located just north of Fred Meyer, was extended to connect with SR-503. Concrete barriers were placed down SR-503 on Fri., Dec. 1 to meet a state requirement preventing left turns into and out of NW 5th Way.
The second part of Phase I of the Congestion Relief Project is the removal of the traffic light at 12th Avenue and Main Street. The signal will be removed over the night of Dec. 5 and 6 between 10 p.m. and 5 a.m.
From 10 p.m. to 2 a.m., all eastbound lanes of SR-502/Main Street will close at the intersection. On Wed., Dec. 6, from 2 a.m. to 5 a.m., all westbound on SR-502 at the intersection will be closed, according to the Washington State Department of Transportation.
Removal of the signal will be accompanied by the construction of a barrier on Main Street that will restrict access to 12th Avenue from Main Street to right turns only, both in and out.
Bonnie Gilberti, communications manager for the city of Battle Ground, said that the project will help prevent congestion on Main Street and SR-503.
“The project targets the daily gridlock drivers are experiencing on Main St and at the 502/503 intersection. The removal of the 12th Ave signal will allow traffic to move freely and not back up on Main St and into the state highway,” Gilberti said. “The addition of NW 5th Way provides a new entrance and exit point to the shopping area for those entering from the north and exiting to the south.”
