Home East County CCTA Provides Winter Update for Highway 4 Corridor Projects

CCTA Provides Winter Update for Highway 4 Corridor Projects

by ECT

The Highway 4 projects include improvements that will help modernize eastern Contra Costa County. The projects expand Highway 4 from four to eight lanes between Loveridge Road in Pittsburg to just west of State Route 160 in Antioch, from two to four lanes from Lone Tree Way to Sand Creek Road in Brentwood, add connector ramps at the State Route 160/Highway 4 interchange, and add a BART extension from Pittsburg to Antioch (eBART).

These projects will greatly improve transit accessibility for the region, help reduce traffic congestion, and enhance the quality of life for the more than 250,000 residents of eastern Contra Costa County.

The projects have been carefully staged to keep 130,000 vehicles per day moving as major construction and demolition work continue. This email provides an update on current and upcoming construction activities

Sand Creek Interchange Project Completion

The Contra Costa Transportation Authority (CCTA) and Caltrans celebrated the completion of the Sand Creek Interchange on October 24, 2014. The completion of the interchange brings much needed congestion relief to eastern Contra Costa County by expanding Highway 4 from two to four lanes and removing the stoplight from Highway 4 at the Sand Creek Road intersection.

In August 2013, a new eastbound bridge over Sand Creek Road and two new eastbound lanes to traffic were opened to traffic. CCTA was able to fund a second, westbound highway bridge as part of this project with cost savings realized on this construction contract and a $5 million contribution of Measure J funds.

Future projects in the area include replacing the existing signalized, at-grade intersection at Balfour Road and Highway 4 with a full access-controlled, grade-separated interchange. Highway 4 will be raised to cross over Balfour Road, creating a new undercrossing.

Night Work on Contra Loma Boulevard, Lone Tree Way, and Hillcrest Avenue Segments

Key portions of the work on the Highway 4 segments in Antioch occur at night in order to avoid impacting commute traffic during the day. While this work may not always be visible to those traveling the corridor, significant progress is being made on each segment. Current work includes completing the foundations for the new bridges at Contra Loma Boulevard/L Street and Lone Tree Way/A Street and constructing retaining walls at Hillcrest Avenue.

Falsework Installation for the 160/4 Connector Ramps

The State Route 160/Highway 4 Direct Connector Ramps project will construct two new connector ramps between Highway 4 and the Antioch Bridge: one connecting westbound Highway 4 directly to northbound State Route 160, and one connecting southbound State Route 160 directly to eastbound Highway 4.

Crews have completed most of the foundation work for these ramps and have started installing falsework (temporary support structures) for the superstructure of these ramps. Falsework construction mainly occurs at night as it involves closing portions of the highway so cranes can lift heavy steel beams over the lanes of traffic.

The project is on track for completion in late 2015.

eBART Update

Construction has started for some of the eBART elements at Hillcrest Avenue, including the entry house (where customers will enter the eBART station) and the pedestrian overcrossing that will lead to the new platform in the median of the highway. Work is complete on the new parking lot for the eBART station, and the contracts for purchasing eBART train cars and track work construction have been finalized.

The future of eBART is East County is even brighter, with funding recently obtained for a new Pittsburg City Center station.

 Information and photo via CCTA press release

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