The Nevada Department of Transportation has substantially completed a major project to repave and enhance Interstate 80 in the Carlin Tunnels area.
The westbound traffic construction detour to the adjacent old highway (U.S. 40) has been removed and both directions of I-80 now pass through the tunnels. Motorists should expect single lane closures in the area through fall as final project clean-up work is completed.
The two-year Carlin Tunnels Improvement project by Q&D Construction revitalized nearly three miles of I-80 through the Carlin Canyon. The roadbed leading up to and through the Carlin Tunnels was reconstructed, including roadway drainage and new concrete pavement near the tunnel entrances. Tunnel lighting was renovated with an innovative LED tunnel lighting system to improve driver visibility by gradually dimming or brightening lighting to match outside conditions, the first such system to be used in a roadway tunnel in North America. The project also enhanced and retrofitted eight bridges and improved intelligent transportation systems such as tunnel monitoring cameras and an ice warning system.
In total, the project:
• Placed more than 26,000 tons of new asphalt
• Installed four new concrete bridge decks and seismic upgrades to eight interstate bridges
• Installed 744 new LED light fixtures
"Interstate 80 is a major thoroughfare, not only for local residents and commuters, but interstate travelers and commercial freight as well," NDOT Assistant District Engineer Michael Murphy explained. "This project provides a smoother, safer drive for the more than 7,000 vehicles that travel I-80 through the tunnels daily, and we appreciate everyone's understanding as we wrap up construction."
The approximately $31 million project utilized the Construction Manager at Risk (CMAR) method to expedite project construction and find construction efficiencies by allowing the contractor to be involved in project design. With both a highly-qualified designer and contractor collaborating to develop the most effectively-constructed and innovative road project, time and cost efficiencies are maximized. In total, the construction method is estimated to have reduced the project time frame from 24 to 16 months of construction.
The tunnel improvements were substantially completed nearly 39 years to the week after the Carlin Tunnels were originally dedicated and opened to traffic on Sept. 25, 1975.
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