As Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) work continues on painting and preservation of the historic SR 99 George Washington Memorial Bridge (a.k.a. Aurora Bridge,) the area affected shifts from the northbound to the southbound side. This requires that the southbound sidewalk along the nearly 3,000 foot structure will be closed, after crews open the sidewalk on the northbound side.
The northbound sidewalk has been closed since mid-January, and will reopen today, September 29th, by 11a. Crews have repaired and painted the historic handrail on the structure, on the northbound side, and will now continue their work southbound. Unlike northbound, however, this work is expected to only require closure through the end of October.
During this closure, like northbound, an emergency contact number for pick-up will posted at both ends of the bridge to assist those pedestrians and cyclists unable to use the detour and in need of alternate transportation.
According to WSDOT, with the exception of the handrail, most of the other repair and painting of the stringers and floor beams has completed. While working on the southbound handrail, crews will also be dismantling the scaffolding and containment system from under the bridge structure. This first phase of the preservation project appears scheduled for completion by the end of the year, with the second project due to begin in late 2017.
Find out more about this project, and get updates, by visiting the WSDOT Aurora Preservation Project website.