Camp Polk Road getting bike lanes

Cutting a wider roadway... and

holding up traffic. photo by Jim Mitchell Drivers on Camp Polk Road can expect delays for the next two months. Deschutes County road crews started a widening project, complete with flaggers, on Monday morning, August 9. The project began at Wilt Road and will extend to East Cascade Avenue in Sisters.

According to county engineer George Kolb, county maintenance crews will widen the roadway to a full 32 feet -- an 11-foot automobile lane and a five-foot bike lane in each direction. Upon completion of the widening project, bids will be opened for paving. Full paving is expected to be complete by mid-October. The paving will include two overlays, creating a new three-inch layer of asphalt.

A deteriorating road surface and community interest in bike lanes to town, along with available funding, prompted the county to start the project now. Overall cost is expected to be about $425,000.

Steve Jorgenson of the Deschutes County Planning Department credited the Sisters Community Trail Committee with being influential in the decision to put in bike lanes. Community meetings regarding the trail system set a high priority for a safe, non-motorized way to get to and from town or school.

Bicyclists meeting automobiles with the few inches, or less, available now has created dangerous situations. Five-foot riding lanes are expected to help create a safer situation -- with less friction between drivers and riders.