Bridge project is ahead of schedule

It may be causing some frustration and short delays now, but in the future a new Lake Creek Bridge on Highway 20 west of Sisters near Suttle Lake will make it a safer ride for those traveling over the Santiam Pass.

Progress on the bridge replacement near milepost 87 is ahead of schedule and on budget, according to Dan Knoll, spokesman for Region 2 office of Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) in Salem.

“Completion date for the bridge replacement is September 20, 2006,” Knoll said.

The new bridge will span Lake Creek, which drains from Suttle Lake on its way to the Metolius River. The project is being managed from the regional office in Salem, rather than from Bend, because it is one of five bridge replacement projects underway by the ODOT between Sisters and Salem. The others are on State Highway 22 at Whitewater Creek, Marion Creek, Pamelia Creek, and North Santiam River. Carter Construction of Salem has the contract for the Lake Creek Bridge.

The bridge replacement projects are designed to improve safety for all drivers using the older bridges and to improve the state’s highway freight corridor by eliminating bridge weight restrictions currently in place, according to the ODOT plan.

The two-year project got underway this spring with a projected cost of $1.6 million. To keep traffic moving, the project is being done in three stages. A detour road was constructed and attached to the north side of the bridge. When work allows two lanes of traffic, a lane on the old bridge is used. Next, one lane of the old bridge will be removed. When the new second lane is finished, the rest of the old bridge will be removed.

“Additional girders for the new bridge are to be delivered around July 19,” Knoll added. Extensive warning signs alert both east and westbound drivers about the project. Flaggers direct traffic through the project area using one lane at times.

Construction of the 100-foot-long bridge was delayed a year because of the 2003 B&B Complex Fire that closed Highway 20 and by some environmental concerns raised by the public. A public meeting held by ODOT in March of last year unveiled changes in the original plan that gained support from most people.