Traffic restricted on Vantage Bridge throughout June
As most cross-state travelers already know, one lane in each direction on the bridge is closed most of the time during construction season as it undergoes a major, multi-year overhaul. Information from the Washington Department of Transportation indicated that both lanes of the bridge in each direction would be open throughout June.
Megan Lott, communications manager for the WSDOT south central region, said there was some misunderstanding though, and the bridge will be closed on weekdays in June.
"Our mistake," Lott said.
All four lanes of the bridge will be open Memorial Day weekend and during the week after, from May 23 through June 1. After that, traffic will be restricted to one lane in each direction Monday through Friday throughout the month of June. All lanes will be open on weekends.
Two lanes will be open in each direction over the July 4 weekend, July 3 through 8. But after July 8 the construction schedule shifts, Lott said, and one lane in each direction will be closed through the end of the construction season in November. The exception will be Labor Day weekend, Aug. 28 through Sept. 2, when both lanes will be open in each direction.
The Vantage Bridge was one of the first projects to start in the spring, along with an extensive paving project on 2.2 miles of Westshore Drive. To date, construction crews have removed the old roadbed, rebuilt it, poured gutters and added a base layer for sidewalks. The sidewalks are being poured now.
"There are no delays; the project is on schedule," said interim Grant County Engineer Dave Bren.
The contractor has 70 working days to finish, Bren said, with a completion date of mid-July.
Fewer DOT road projects are scheduled in Grant and Adams counties in 2025 than was the case in 2024, but there are some planned later in the summer.
Sebastian Moraga, communications consultant for the DOT north central region, said two sections of Interstate 90 are scheduled for repaving, with the start date right in the middle of summer. That means the project might not be finished in one construction season — some sections may have to wait until 2026.
"It is not scheduled to start until mid-July at the earliest," Moraga wrote in response to an email from the Columbia Basin Herald.
Paving is scheduled for the Vantage Bridge to George, then from Dodson Road to Mae Valley. Crews will be shaving down the original surface and repaving, fixing cracks, adding signage and lane markings. Drivers on I-90 may experience delays while the crews are working. There might be some short-term ramp closures, so getting on and off I-90 in the project area might mean taking an alternate route.
A project to improve a section of Schoonover Road about eight miles west of Ritzville is scheduled to start in June.
A new roundabout is scheduled for State Route 26 and its intersection with South First Avenue in Othello. Moraga said construction is scheduled to begin in early August, lasting two to three months.
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