PORT ANGELES — A two-week closure of the double-deck Elwha River bridge is planned next month to install a higher guardrail on the vehicle deck.
A 42-inch-tall “precautionary rail” consisting of two-inch tubes will replace the temporary wooden railing that has graced the sides of the bridge since it opened in late September.
It will augment the existing 24-inch metal rail.
The new weathering steel railing will be added as a safety precaution for bicyclists and pedestrians who cross the scenic river canyon on the vehicle deck instead of the pedestrian path that is suspended by cables below the 85-foot-tall bridge west of Port Angeles.
Consideration of a resolution declaring the temporary closure of the $19.7 million bridge was postponed in Tuesday’s Clallam County commissioners meeting. The resolution likely will come before the three-member board next Tuesday.
The county needs formal permission from the Federal Highway Administration to install the railing and an estimate from contractor Parsons RCI on labor costs.
Expected Feb. 1
If all goes well, Clallam County Engineer Ross Tyler said, the closure would begin on Feb. 1.
“We’re pushing real hard to get our ducks in a row,” Tyler said.
“It’s something we wanted to do from the beginning, but the [Federal Highway Administration] wouldn’t allow us to do it.”
The Federal Highway Administration has stringent crash-test requirements for bridge railings.
If the railing is approved, the state would allocate the federal funds to the county.
“We need to get an answer back from Olympia,” Tyler said.
“If Olympia balks, or if Parsons balks, we would delay it for another few weeks.”
Clallam has close to $100,000 in prefabricated material to complete the bridge railing in supply.
Parsons would likely subcontract the work to a local contractor, Tyler said.
“We had originally thought that Parsons was not interested, and it turns out that maybe they are,” Tyler said.
“Last week, they called and said if you guys close it to traffic, we could really turn and burn and get it done in a short period of time.”
Notice on Highway 101
During the closure, the bridge will be blocked by concrete barriers. Notice will be posted on signs along Elwha River Road and U.S. Highway 101.
“We’d just as soon not keep it closed any longer than we have to,” he said.
Most pedestrians and cyclists cross the canyon on the 14-foot-wide pedestrian deck — part of the Olympic Discovery Trail.
“We know some people ride bicycles or walk across the (vehicle) deck,” Tyler said.
While the existing railing on the 28-foot-wide vehicle deck is sufficient for cars and trucks, a precautionary rail is intended as an added safety measure, Tyler said.
“It’s not going to be an anti-jump thing,” Tyler said.
Part of the attraction of the new bridge is the scenic views of the Elwha River valley. The county intends to keep the railing relatively low for the aesthetic value to motorists and their passengers.
The 589-foot span replaced the one-lane Warren-truss-type steel bridge that served the county from 1914 to 2007.
Meanwhile, commissioners Mike Doherty, Mike Chapman and Steve Tharinger passed a resolution appointing Alice Hoffman, Melissa Turner and Tyler to the county’s Safety and Health Committee.
Mattias Jaruegren was appointed to the Permit Advisory Board.
The commissioners also approved four land purchase agreements with private property owners and a right-of-way agreement with the Clallam County Public Utilities District for the widening of Old Olympic Highway.
Tyler told the commissioners the county is about halfway though the process of securing land and right-of-way for the project.
County crews will widen the road to 40 feet to allow space for 12-foot lanes and eight-foot shoulders on both sides.
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Reporter Rob Ollikainen can be reached at 360-417-3537 or at rob.ollikainen@peninsuladailynews.com.
