Originally constructed in 1982, the Seward-Meridian Parkway is a major road located outside of Anchorage in south central Alaska in between Wasilla and Palmer. According to the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities (DOT&PF), the original purpose of the parkway was to serve as a “rural two-lane connector between three larger, primary roads in the area (the Parks Highway, the Palmer-Wasilla Highway, and Bogard Road).”
DOT&PF and general contractor Mass Excavation Inc. are in the middle of a project along the parkway called “Seward-Meridian Parkway Road Improvements, Phase II: Palmer-Wasilla Highway to Seldon Road.” The project is the second and final phase to expand the Seward-Meridian Parkway.
The current average daily traffic on the Seward-Meridian Parkway is 13,000.
"The Seward-Meridian Parkway is very congested during certain times of the day," said Cody Troseth, a Project Manager with Mass Excavation Inc. Troseth is serving as the main point of contact for the owners, coordinates with subcontractors, and provides oversight of the project.
In 2025, statistics from the World Population Review showed that Wasilla’s population was over 10,500, a 15 percent increase since 2020. Palmer has a population of nearly 6,700, an increase of nearly 12.5 percent since 2020. The area is poised for more growth, as construction of new houses is booming.
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Multiple schools — Cottonwood Elementary School, Teeland Middle School, Career Tech High School, and Fronteras Charter School — are situated just off the roadway. These schools are a major contributor to area traffic, so backups occur regularly during drop-off and pick-up times.
Another reason the Seward-Meridian Parkway experiences congestion is that drivers use it as an alternative to other routes.
"Drivers use Seward-Meridian Parkway to try and bypass the Parks Highway because it is also highly congested most of the day," Troseth said.
The project involves multiple elements that the project designers expect to relieve the congestion. The primary element is widening approximately 2 miles of the highway to four lanes. The team is also adding turn lanes to both Bogard Road and Seldon Road, approaching their intersections with Seward Meridian.
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Other project elements include:
- Extending the road to Seldon Road
- Adding new traffic signals at East Country Field Circle, East Meridian Park Loop/East Birch View Drive, Bogard Road, Tambert Drive, and Seldon Road
- Widening the road to the west (except at Alcantra Armory)
- Adding turn lanes
- Constructing 8-foot-wide paved shoulders
- Constructing a bridge over Cottonwood Creek
- Adding additional parking at Cottonwood Creek
- Improving access for the schools along the project corridor
- Relocating utilities including underground gas lines, telephone, TV, and electrical poles
The team is also installing approximately 100 streetlights to enhance the area's lighting.
The current project builds on the completion of phase one (completed in 2012), making the entire parkway four lanes.
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Cottonwood Creek, which feeds into Wasilla Lake, is the home of a popular canoe trail. The 7-mile trail traverses scenic waterways throughout Wasilla. While the team is working on the new bridge, the boat portage at the creek has been closed.
Construction on the project began in spring 2024 and is scheduled to conclude in summer 2026. Mass Excavation, according to Troseth, has had a goal since the project started to complete it by the end of 2025. They remain optimistic about the project's early completion.
"Since March, we've been working a day and night shift," Troseth said, "and weekends when necessary."
He added that good summer weather in 2025 has also been helpful. Working a second shift has other benefits as well.
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"Because there's less traffic, we can bring in more materials quicker and more efficiently, which helps with the schedule and the budget,” Troseth said. "It also causes less detriment to the public and minimally affects the community, which is a big concern of the DOT&PF.”
One of the biggest challenges the team has faced is keeping traffic moving while construction is ongoing. The team has worked on one side and shifted traffic to the other. Note that the team is working on the Seward-Meridian Parkway as well as on Bogard Road and Seldon Road.
Another challenge is that the specifications include excavating non-structural material from underneath and around the bridge. The expectation was that the team's average excavation level would be 13 feet.
However, the team has needed to excavate in some places upwards of 30 feet deep to reach solid ground and bring fill back up, ensuring the road is built on good material. The extra deep digging has necessitated the use of more dewatering in order to remove the non-structural soil and replace it with good gravel.
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Another element of the project has also required challenging dirt work. The project calls for linking two sections of the Seward-Meridian Parkway via a new roadway (it will run for approximately 0.5 miles). To accomplish this, the team is excavating through a hill and relocating approximately 200,000 cubic yards of dirt.
Much of this dirt the team has encountered while digging is hardpan material, making it difficult to remove the dirt. To address the issue, the team installed a ripper on the excavator. With the claw-like ripper, the team can break through the hardpan material and excavate the dirt.
Founded in 2004 and headquartered in Anchorage, Mass Excavation Inc. focuses exclusively on Alaska and has become one of the largest firms based in the state.
"We started going after large DOT projects in 2019 and have done two significant highway jobs for the state," Troseth said. "The Seward-Meridian Parkway is near our main office, and the work is right in our wheelhouse, as we're good at excavating and backfilling."
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He added that the primary element of the job is moving large amounts of earth.
Typically, a few companies bid on a project like the Seward-Meridian Parkway, and Mass Excavation is part of that select group.
The construction budget for the project is just over $43 million. As of this writing, the project is on budget. While there have been some changes that have brought additional costs, nothing significant has occurred.
Upon completion of the Seward-Meridian Parkway Road Improvements project, drivers will experience a significant reduction in congestion within the project area. The addition of traffic lights and more streetlights will make it safer. These elements, along with improvements to side streets that make them compliant with modern standards, will help foster safe pedestrian movement. Water lovers will also benefit, as the canoe trail will be safer and have improved access.
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- Owner: Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities
- General Contractor: Mass Excavation, Anchorage, Alaska
- Other Contractors: Sturgeon Electric Company, Henderson, Colorado; Swalling General Contractors, Anchorage; Jolt Construction & Traffic Maintenance, Big Lake, Alaska; Finishing Edge Alaska, Anchorage; ASRC Earthworks, Anchorage; Brownson Bros, Anchorage; Acme Fence, Anchorage; Pacific Asphalt, Anchorage; AK Land Clearing, Anchorage
