Summer has flown by and it's now time to get back into ASCE and our Section activities. I hope, you each had an opportunity to enjoy some of our great weather in July and August. And did you get away with your family, or at least spend a few moments doing something you really like to do outside of work? My wife, Bev, and I spent two weeks in July traveling in Europe. We had a wonderful trip, reminiscing about starting our married life together in Germany 30 years ago this October.

I have a couple of items to mention, hopefully to stimulate some thought and possibly some action by our Section. The first concerns the issues of Prevailing Wages in public contracts and contractor licensing in this state. The second concerns travel on our Interstate system and major highways. Then there is an important business item to cover.

PREVAILING WAGES - The City of Mukilteo has just completed construction of, and opened, our new library. It is a tremendous addition to the City, and our citizens are really happy with what has been created for them. The project has gone VERY smoothly, with a fantastic partnership developed between the Contractor, the Architect and the City. This project contract has seen "open communications" surpassing most contracts I have had the pleasure to work on. (I am luckily experiencing a similar situation on our other major project this year.) There have been few problems to overcome, and all parties have worked quickly and openly to resolve those few which presented challenges.

The issue of prevailing wages has become big on this contract, however. Interested parties from outside came on-site and checked the actual wages paid by one of the subcontractors (who was ultimately terminated for lack of performance). They found the actual wages paid by this sub were not in line with those required by State law. As a result, the prime contractor has been required to make up the $20,000+ difference in documented wages and benefits. He recognized his obligation and quickly made good on the wages for those who had come forward to submit sworn statements. This, in combination with having to finish the sub's work and pay outstanding bills, has cost the contractor over $50,000 out of pocket. The prime has filed fraud charges, which the City is pursuing, against the sub since the sub had certified on each pay request that he had paid prevailing wages and all outstanding bills. (NOTE - be sure your contracts contain such a provision, as it may be your only protection and basis for a suit.) (We looked back and found this same sub was low bidder on this project component for many of the bidders. Funny thing that he could bid low.)

In dealing with this issue, I have come to understand that failure to pay prevailing wages can result in a $500 fine, if caught and followed up on by the State. And seldom are the contractor's caught, or pursued to make good when caught. But if caught, the question becomes one of economics, since the consequences are minimal.

I am not advocating prevailing wages. I can argue both sides of the issue. But, IF we are going to have such a law, I truly believe there should be some teeth in the law, and it should be enforced vigorously when cheating is found. And a separate, but contributing, issue is that of contractor licensing. The requirements for obtaining a license in this state seem to be so minimal that a contractor who gets caught, or is involved in some other situation of poor repute, can fade away and re-evolve with a new name on the old equipment. Again, if we have a law, I think it should have some teeth which work to protect the public from unscrupulous characters.

HIGHWAY TRAVEL - I bring up this topic as a result of our travels on Autobahns and Autostrada's in Europe this Summer.

I have long felt that a significant percentage of our freeway capacity is lost due to poor (and now illegal) driving habits of a few. (Or are these aggressive acts intended to express the driver's "control"?). I am talking about left lane and HOV lane driving when not in the act of passing.

In Europe, drivers know to stay right. You use the left lane for passing, then move right, even when travelling at high speed. When a car approaches from behind, cars move right, regardless of how fast they are traveling. Seldom did I observe drivers having to flash lights to pass. Turn signals were used by the super high speed vehicles for visibility, and folks responded well in advance for these cars. Tooling along at or near 160 kph for hours was not a problem, until the volume simply overwhelmed the road.

In this country, although it is illegal in this State, drivers amble along at whatever speed they like in any lane. How often have you had to pass on the right because someone ahead of you had decided they had the right to control the speed in the left or HOV lane, were not passing, and had nobody in front of them. They do the same thing in the center lane of a three lane highway, as well, and cause backups because people have to go around them, often using both sides.

I'm not a traffic engineer, but I recognize absolute capacity is a function of speed, safe following distances, etc. But under most driving conditions, it seems to be ruled by a few drivers interfering with smooth travel due to their habits or acts. I admit to some bias on this issue. And perhaps my analysis isn't scientific. But having driven at speed in situations with up to 50 MPH (80 kph) differential speeds with no problems, leads me to believe there are some actions which might contribute to solutions without having to build new infrastructure.

I would like to hear some comments from you folks on your experiences and perspectives along these lines. I would also like to see the Section take some action to highlight these or similar issues, if there is interest from the Membership, and make some suggestions as to legislation to help correct the problems. What are your thoughts? How about a letter to the Editor?

BUSINESS ITEMS - Our election of officers is complete and the winners announced. Your officers for 1998-99 are:

• President - Steve Hart
• President-elect- Susan Gardner
• Treasurer - Phil Cohen
• Director - Shannon Kinsella
• AMF Rep. - Bob Bucher

Congratulations to each of our newly elected officers. I am sure they will serve us well.

I hope to see you at the next meeting.

John

The University of Washington's Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering would like to congratulate our 1998 Concrete Canoe Team. The University of Washington's 1998 Concrete Canoe team has had an incredible year. Celebrating the Department of Civil Engineering's 100th Anniversary, this year's canoe (appropriately named "Centennial") represents new heights in construction techniques and technical innovation on the part of the students. In April, the Team won the Pacific Northwest Region for the first time since 1982. They went on to take an impressive 5th place at the 1998 ASCE/Master Builders National Concrete Canoe Competition held in mid-June in Rapid City, South Dakota. This is an incredible accomplishment given the perennial canoe powers that dominate the event at this level. The UW Canoe Team is committed to continual improvement and a national championship by the year 2000!

In this centennial year, the story of the concrete canoe is one significant happening among many that are helping to make 1998 special. The Centennial Reunion Weekend held on June 26th and 27th was enthusiastically attended by more than 200 alumni, and we have additional 100 year events planned for the months ahead.

The newsletter editor for the Seattle Section of ASCE has changed.
Please send all upcoming information, press releases, news and requests to:.

Grace Kwok
Seattle Section Newsletter Editor
c/o Parsons Brinckerhoff Quade and Douglas
999 Third Avenue, Suite 2200
Seattle, WA 98104
Phone: (206) 382-5234
Fax: (206) 382-5200
Email: kwok@pbworld.com

The History and Heritage Committee invites Section members, their families, and friends, to participate in a "Heritage Interpretive Hike" on the Iron Goat Trail, on Saturday, October 10. We will be joining a guided hike focused on railroad archaeology, to be led by the Volunteers for Outdoor Washington. The hike will start at 10:00 a.m. at the Martin Creek trailhead and is scheduled to last between 3 and 6 hours. The trail is designed to be barrier free. Bring rain gear, a warm sweater, sturdy boots, lunch, and liquids. We'll meet at the trailhead, but will help arrange for carpooling if you are interested. Please contact Cindy Hirsch at HNTB, 425/455-3555 if you will be attending, and if you need directions or want to carpool. Note that a USFS parking permit is required for parking at the trailhead; this can be purchased for the day at various outlets including REI and the Skykomish Ranger Station (you'll need to know the license plate number of the car you'll be taking up there).

The Iron Goat Trail runs on the old grade of the Great Northern Railway at Stevens Pass. The area is an ASCE National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark in recognition of the remarkable achievement it was, crossing the Cascades at the Pass with rail over 100 years ago.

The ASCE Water Resources and Environmental Committee will be meeting for the first time this fall on Thursday, September 17, 1998. The location of the meeting has yet to be confirmed but is expected to be in Seattle. The time will be from 12 noon to 1 pm, and will be a brown bag lunch. The subject of the meeting will be Erosion Control using newly available and emerging techniques.

Recent advances in erosion prevention and sediment control technology have the potential to greatly improve compliance with various water quality regulations. David Jenkins from the Washington State Department of Transportation will discuss some of the new products and methods that are now available, including: polyacrylamide (PAM) application to bare soil; low cost, on-site treatment of turbid water; bonded fiber matrix (BFM) spray-on hydromulches; and, various sediment control devices. A 10-15 minute question and answer session will follow the presentation.

Because of the need to publish the location of the meeting after the newsletter has already been printed, we will be trying to notify anyone interested in the meeting via e-mail and phone calls. To receive that information, please forward a note or phone call to Fritz Timm at David Evans and Associates, Inc. (425) 519-6500.

A beautiful, 500 page, pictorial history of the first 100 years of the University of Washington Department of Civil Engineering is now available. The results of years of diligent work and research by Professors Emeritus Robert Sylvester, Joe Colcord, Robert Seabloom, and the late Art Kramer (MSEE '32), the book contains information about students, faculty, staff and numerous pictures. The names of all graduates are listed by graduation year and also alphabetically. The cost is $60.00 which includes postage and handling. Use the order form contained in this newsletter.

Employment advertisements may be placed by contacting the editor, Grace Kwok, prior to the newsletter deadline each month.
Unemployed Seattle Section members seeking work may advertise in the Section newsletter at no cost.

David Evans and Associates (DEA), a major, west coast ENR Top 100 engineering firm, is experiencing exceptional growth. From the Pacific Northwest to San Diego to Arizona and New Mexico, we blanket the west with 20 offices providing high level engineering services to major land development projects (Residential/Commercial). We have multiple opportunities for Civil Land Development Engineers, Project Managers, Site Designers, Licensed Surveyors, and AutoCAD designers.

We recognize that superior skill, experience or contacts command superior rewards. Come grow with us! For full, confidential consideration in any of our offices, Email a resume to jobs@deainc.com or fax to 925-867-3388 or send to: DEA, 5000 Executive Parkway, Suite 125, San Ramon, CA 94583. We are an equal opportunity employer. David Evans and Associates.

The College of Engineering at the University of Washington will offer the Drilling and Blasting Techniques course on January 18 - 22, 1999 in Seattle. This annual five day program presents engineers and project managers with the opportunity to increase their understanding of modern, successful techniques used to effectively manage the drilling and blasting project from initial cost estimating to project completion and evaluation. New with this session will be more in-depth focus on project management/risk management in construction blasting. This new emphasis is especially relevant to public officials and agency personnel who design and oversee public projects such as building and highway construction, sanitary, water and other construction projects which require the use of blasting as a tool. The instructors for the 1999 program are Jerry R. Wallace, Wallace Technical Blasting and John L. Floyd, Blast Dynamics.

For information and a detailed course brochure, contact Engineering Professional Programs, University of Washington by Phone: (206) 543-5539, FAX (206) 543-2352 or Email: uw-epp@engr.washington.edu . For online information: www.engr.washington.edu/epp/.