GOverpass-close-up_04112013_3666_webThe Gateway Avenue Overpass project continues steady progress as crews await final soil settlement before final construction takes place. Soil settlement is dependent on groundwater levels; when water evaporates, soil compacts and fills the gaps where water was present.

The project, part of the larger West Vancouver Freight Access project, builds an overpass that separates vehicle traffic from train traffic below. The new bridge will allow cars and trucks to travel over the port’s growing internal rail corridor while accessing two of the port’s five marine terminals. The project is set for completion next month.

The slab barriers have been installed, curbs and gutters are approximately 80 percent complete and the cast-in-place barrier is being continuously formed, poured, stripped and cured from south to north. Final stages that will begin construction following the settlement process include mounting signs, striping the roadway, securing railings on both sides of the bridge and constructing expansion joints to allow for expansion and contraction of the bridge.