PORT ORCHARD — South Kitsap commuters who travel along a circuitous detour that skirts construction work on the Tremont Street widening project may have gotten a glimpse of progress this past week at the east end of the major Port Orchard city arterial.
They’ve driven on the new roundabout at the South Kitsap Boulevard-Tremont intersection over the past few months, but at the other end of the detour are signs that the project is edging closer to completion: curbings have been added that clearly define the outline of a roundabout at Pottery Avenue.
After other preliminary work at the Pottery-Tremont intersection is completed following the Thanksgiving holiday, general contractor Active Construction Inc.’s paving subcontractor will begin laying the initial asphalt layer within the roundabout’s footprint, now defined by the new concrete curbing.
While the construction workers’ strike this fall delayed the project slightly, the schedule for completion is obviously subject to the rainy winter weather.
Still, the third and final phase of the $22 million project is underway, and after two-way traffic between the South Kitsap Boulevard and Pottery roundabouts is reestablished, crews will finish up rock wall construction and ancillary roadway improvements and transit station work.
The new four-lane Tremont configuration will be accentuated with bicycle lanes, planting strips and new sidewalks and landscaping. There also will be bulb-outs — also known as curb extensions — at key points, LED streetlights and underground utilities.
Kitsap Transit commuters will use improved bus stops with pullout lanes along Tremont. Also, a significant part of the project, but not visible, are improvements to storm drainage, water lines and sanitary sewers, according to the Tremont Street project update website.
The Tremont street widening project plans have emphasized driver and pedestrian safety. There will be a mid-block crossing with pedestrian-activated flashers between South Kitsap Boulevard and Pottery, as well as improved sight distances and increased clear zones near obstructions.
Work is proceeding quickly behind this road barrier, which sits near the Tremont-Pottery Avenue intersection, where a roundabout is being prepared to receive an initial layer of asphalt. (Bob Smith | Kitsap Daily News)
