JOYCE — An upgrade of the Lyre River bridge on state Highway 112 will require that it be closed twice during the next two weeks as crews switch out a decaying wooden beam with a stronger steel one.
Drivers who cross the 268-foot-long bridge can expect one-way, alternating traffic from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays beginning Monday and continuing through April 14, the state Department of Transportation said.
One-hour closures of the bridge are also scheduled between noon and 3 p.m. this Monday and between 10 a.m. and noon next Monday, April 11.
A bridge maintenance and preservation inspection crew recently discovered deterioration in one of the 12-foot-long, 10-inch-by-12-inch-thick timber support beams, the department said in a statement.
While the 1959 bridge is safe to cross and is structurally sufficient, engineers feel replacement of the beam will further stabilize the bridge and help maintain access on the highway.
Exact times for the closures are difficult to pinpoint since crews must stage a crane and use it to install and remove a 40-foot-long temporary support girder beneath the bridge.
A jack on the girder, positioned directly above the old beam, will be used to slightly lift this section of the bridge, relieving pressure from the segments around the beam and allowing crews to remove it and install a new steel section in its place.
“There will be a lot of work going on, but we are going to minimize traffic disruptions as much as possible,” said Ron Bashon, bridge superintendent.
“Keeping this in mind, the vast majority of this work will occur off the highway and beneath the bridge.”
For more information, visit www.wsdot.wa.gov/news for photos, videos, news and blogs.
Real-time traffic information is available at www.wsdot.wa.gov/traffic or by dialing 5-1-1.
