ARLINGTON — The weekend of July 11-14, Washington State Department of Transportation crews will close Highway 9 near Arlington to install a six-foot square box culvert beneath the highway at Kackman Creek. The new culvert will improve fish passage for bull trout and other local species.

“This project will benefit more than drivers,” explained WSDOT Assistant Project Engineer Janice Fahning. “The new culvert will make it easier for fish and other wildlife to navigate Kackman Creek under Highway 9.”

This weekend, crews will remove the 18-inch pipe that carries Kackman Creek beneath the highway and install a new six-foot square box culvert. To complete this work, crews will close Highway 9 from 10 p.m. July 11 to 5 a.m. July 14 at 252nd Street NE, also known as Kackman Road. Drivers will detour around the closure using 268th Street NE, Highway 530, and Interstate 5. All of 252nd Street NE will remain open throughout the closure, but drivers will not be able to access the road from Highway 9.

Two weeks ago, crews opened a new, straighter one-mile stretch of Highway 9 to drivers, which also required a full closure of the highway.

“This weekend’s work marks the project’s last full closure of Highway 9,” Fahning said. “We want to thank drivers for their patience as we work to wrap up the project this fall.”

In addition to installing the box culvert, crews will start work on a retaining wall and barrier at Kackman Creek to prevent the steep embankment from eroding into the creek bed. Later this summer, crews will install sidewalks near 268th Street NE, complete new turn lanes at the intersections of 252nd Street NE and 268th Street NE, and complete final paving and striping.

In the past year, crews have opened a new section of Highway 9 to drivers and demolished an old curvy stretch of highway, built a new bridge over Harvey Creek and Harvey Creek Road, and enhanced visibility at 268 Street NE by filling in a dip in the road and constructing a retaining wall.

This $20.7-million nickel-funded project is scheduled for completion this fall. For more information on the project, visit the project’s Web site at www.wsdot.wa.gov/Projects/Highway9/SchlomanTo268thNE.