Sandifur Bridge to be ready by fall

Compare Spokane to cities like New York, where only a limited number of bridges traverse rivers, and we seem blessed.

But then again, we have a fair number of headaches associated with those bridges this summer.

For those of you wondering what’s up with the area’s many bridge projects, here’s a quick rundown.

Fitness buffs will have their own new route over the Spokane River come October, when the Sandifur Memorial Bridge is set to open near High Bridge Park.

The $2.25 million project is on schedule, says Kaye Turner, executive director of Friends of the Centennial Trail.

It will provide a much-needed link between downtown and and western parts of the trail. Right now, pedestrians and cyclists must travel along city streets between Riverfront Park and Riverside State Park.

And don’t worry, the not-so-appealing structure over the river now is just a support bridge for construction. The final bridge will use existing concrete pylons.

Travel a bit east, and the Monroe Street Bridge is also on budget and on schedule to open in the summer of 2005.

Crews are almost done with work above the central arch and are now working above both the side arches.

Drivers have been using the Trent Avenue Bridge since winter, but the contractor is just now putting the finishing touches on the project. That contractor was fined for not getting the bridge open on time, but was given extra time for some of the last cosmetic details.

“We’re hoping the contractor can wrap this thing up by fall,” says Washington Department of Transportation spokesman Al Gilson.

In Millwood, work on the Argonne Bridge continues. That bridge is supposed to be completed by the end of summer.

The Freya Way Bridge should be complete by mid-October, although it may be done early, says Jim Laughtland with the Spokane Street Department.

In early August, crews will pour the concrete in the center of the bridge and then focus on finishing traffic barriers and other detail work, Laughtland says.

And the four bridges being built in North Spokane over Farwell Road will be done by the end of the year, Gilson says.

Of course, those bridges won’t take drivers anywhere for some time. They’re part of the ongoing North Spokane Corridor project, which won’t be open to motorists for a few years yet and won’t be complete from Interstate 90 north for perhaps decades.

Slow, crews at work

Well, it probably won’t come as a surprise to anyone that the Washington State Department of Transportation has decided to lower the speed limit in the I-90 work zone between Argonne and Sullivan to 50 mph.

Impatient and inattentive people have caused more than 30 crashes there in the last few months.

Better pay attention to the lowered speed limit, folks. The State Patrol says it’s going to be out there in force to enforce.

Park police

If kids playing aren’t enough to make you slow down, how about the cops?

The Spokane Police Department’s traffic unit will be conducting emphasis patrols this week around city parks. Speed limits around parks are 20 mph.

Dying to drive

Traffic fatalities worldwide topped 1.2 million last year, according to the World Health Organization.

In the United States, crashes in 2003 claimed the lives of more than 43,000 people.

The World Health Organization wants to bring more awareness to this issue.

While we work to find cures for diseases, most traffic deaths are seen as individual tragedies rather than a problem of a larger magnitude demanding global solutions.

Might have to hold it

The Washington Department of Transportation Sprague Lake rest areas on Interstate 90 will be closed through Friday for parking lot pavement sealing.

The kids better listen this time when you tell them to go at home before the trip.

Slow going

Chip seal work could slow things down considerably this week in Spokane County on the following state routes – Bruce Road near Mt. Spokane State Park and Highway 90 from Interstate 90 to Lakeland Village.

Interstate 90 on and off ramps at Barker Road, Greenacres, Liberty Lake and Idaho Road may be closed from time to time over the next three weeks as state road crews work on grinding and paving. Ramp closures will be noted on DOT alert boards and will take place only between 7 p.m. and 6 a.m.

Spokane County road repairs could delay traffic in the following locations this week: Grove Road from the Sunset Highway to Mission and Trails Road from Old Trails Road to the railroad overpass today, Long Lake Road from Gray Road to the Lincoln County line Tuesday, Coulee Hite Road from Wood Road to Christensen Road Wednesday and Coulee Hite Road from Christensen Road to Four Mounds Road Thursday.