County takes action to keep Mullen Road traffic afloat

Thurston County crews added temporary traffic signals and closed one lane of Mullen Road Southeast on Wednesday because of water over the roadway.

Similar restrictions were put into place last Friday on Hawks Prairie Road Northeast near Lacey.

County officials say El Nino and other factors are at play.

“From the start of the rainy season in October through March 14, we have received 44 inches of rain,” said county road operations manager Lucy Mills. “That is 18 inches above normal, and has resulted in very high water levels in some areas, including Mullen Road.”

In Hawks Prairie, crews believe a beaver dam that was discovered in a nearby wetland likely contributed to the water that was pooling over the road, according to county engineer Scott Lindblom.

“We’re working with the property owner and Fish and Wildlife to notch that beaver dam … to allow some of that water to drain out,” he said. “Hopefully that will start to alleviate the problem.”

Meanwhile, crews plan to tear out and rebuild a portion of both lanes of Mullen just east of Afflerbaugh Drive Southeast, under the Burlington Northern Santa Fe railroad trestle, when the weather gets drier.

“The road was built through a wetland, and one of the characteristics of a wetland is soft ground,” Lindblom said. “…The road is sinking, the ground water is rising and the result of that is the flooding.”

Lindblom gave an update on the Mullen project on Tuesday during the Board of County Commissioners meeting. Under normal circumstances, crews would try to raise the road much higher than it is, he said. But since it’s under a trestle, there are restrictions on how much higher they can raise the road surface, and still keep it open to most vehicles, Lindblom said.

The road currently has a 12-foot height restriction, and taller vehicles are directed to use an alternate route.

“We hope to raise up that lowest part of the road as much as we can,” Lindblom said.

He estimated that the repair would take about a week, and cost about $25,000.

Thurston County resident Fred Moore, 49, says he drives that section of Mullen at least three or four times a day, and he’s glad that the county plans to fix it.

Moore also supports the lane closure, which includes a 10-mile-an-hour speed limit.

“People go to fast through it,” he said. “…I think there’s going to be an accident eventually.”

Thurston County resident Kasey Omon, 37, said the section of Mullen at the trestle always gets a big puddle during the rainy season. But the water usually dries out in a day or two.

“This year is worse,” she said. “No matter how slow you’re going, when you’re going 10 miles an hour, you’re still going to spray up a ton of water.”

Omon said she’s also glad the county plans to address the issue when the weather dries out, but she thinks the temporary lane closure with alternating traffic is going too far.

“I don’t think it’s necessary,” she said. “…I think a lot of people will get irritated by it. I think that’s just human nature.”

This story was originally published March 16, 2016 at 5:17 PM with the headline "County takes action to keep Mullen Road traffic afloat."