Working with a ‘Progressive Design-Build’ Team to achieve meaningful public engagement on an critical highway project

I am currently working as Public Involvement Lead for pre-construction (engineering design) phase of the Sterling Highway Safety Corridor Improvements (SSCI) MP 82.5-94 Project.  We are a subconsultant to the design engineering firm, DOWL, who is partnered with QAP to deliver this project for the State of Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities.  

The SSCI is a federally funded project to reconstruct the Sterling Highway between Sterling and Soldotna to improve safety and reduce congestion. The goals of this project are to:

• Provide a safe and reliable roadway that supports the efficient movement of goods, services, and people;

• Allow for decommissioning of the Traffic Safety Corridor by constructing a safer roadway that is less reliant on institutional and enforcement measures to abate crashes;

• Better accommodate the seasonal increase of tourist and recreational traffic; and

• Minimize inconvenience to motorists and impacts to private property access.

The project had encountered criticism and local opposition in the past, due to concerns about the potential impacts on access to businesses and neighborhoods along the corridor.  Stephanie Queen was brought on to the team to lead public and stakeholder engagement, ensuring the community’s feedback and concerns would be considered throughout the design phase, with the goal of balancing the continued need for local access with the project’s overall safety objectives.

More about this project, at: www.SterlingSafetyCorridor.com