Alberta, Cochran; Highway 2 at Hayford close today for work

Alberta Street from Northwest Boulevard to Francis Avenue and Cochran Street from Northwest Boulevard to its crossover at Alberta are being closed today as part of a reconstruction of the arterial route, and U.S. Highway 2 at Hayford Road will have a 15-minute construction closure this evening. The Alberta-Cochran work is expected to take about four months under a 10-year street improvement program approved by voters in 2004. The reconstruction is being done under a $3.8 million contract with Spokane Rock Products Inc. and involves excavation and curb-to-curb rebuilding of both streets, which have been badly deteriorated in recent years. Intersections at Northwest Boulevard and Garland, Rowan and Wellesley avenues will remain open to east-west traffic with designated detours for Alberta and Cochran on Northwest Boulevard for northbound traffic and Ash Street for southbound traffic. Elsewhere, U.S. 2 at Hayford Road on the east side of Airway Heights is being closed to traffic for about 15 minutes this evening as a safety precaution while a contractor detonates explosives for an adjacent commercial development project, state transportation officials said. The work from 6:45 to about 7 p.m. will close both the eastbound and westbound lanes.