Reykjanesbraut / Fífuhvammsvegur
Between Fífuhvammsvegur and Kaplakriki - Iceland
Verkís services was almost all aspects of the design, preparation of tender documents and procurement, design of roads and paths, three grade separated junctions, bridges, underpasses, drainage, noise reduction, street lighting, traffic forecasting, traffic simulation, geotechnical- and groundwater research.
| Sizes: 4 km |
| Project time: 2002 - 2008 |
Project overview:
Reykjanesbraut is one of the major routes around Reykjavik. It connects the south urban area to the northern and western parts and provides a link between the Keflavik international airport and the whole country. The section upgraded in this project lies in three municipalities. In the future all junctions to Reykjanesbraut between Keflavik and the planned Sundabraut are to be grade separated.
The project entailed converting about 4 km of single 2-lane carriageway into a dual carriageway, complete with junctions and underpasses.
The project was divided into four separate stages. In the first stage the dual carriageway was created by building a new two-lane road on one side of the previous road. Two existing junctions were temporarily modified and an underpass for traffic was extended. Two new pedestrian underpasses were built. The second stage took place almost simultaneously when a new grade separated junction was built to connect the new Urridaholt development to the road network. The third and fourth stages entailed changing the two at-grade junctions into grade separated junctions, complete with pedestrian underpasses and local pathways.
A traffic forecast model, based on planning figures, was used to estimate future traffic and decide the capacity of roads and junctions. New methods were used to compare different solutions for junctions. By using traffic simulation the decision was made to build a grade separated roundabout on the Arnarnesvegur junction, the first of its kind in Iceland.
A traffic noise study was carried out along the entire project area and noise barriers designed to implement the Minister of Environmental Affairs' decision of not allowing noise levels exceeding 55 dB(A).
