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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Safety measures pay off after crash

Four years after a state Highway 904 crash killed five people, a traffic safety project along eight miles of it has been deemed one of the most successful in state history.

Crashes on Highway 904 between Cheney and Interstate 90 have been reduced by 21 percent, and fatal collisions are down 70 percent.

That compares with an average 6 percent collision reduction and an average 33 percent decrease in fatal collisions for other corridor safety projects, said Matthew Enders, a traffic services manager with the Washington state Department of Transportation.

The three-year corridor safety project included three components – road improvements; increased enforcement by the Washington State Patrol, Spokane County Sheriff’s Office and Cheney police; and education campaigns by the Spokane County Regional Health District and Spokane County Traffic Safety Commission.

“For Cheney, our wake-up call was February 7, 2002,” said George Abrams, the former reverend at Cheney United Methodist Church, of the head-on crash that killed five prominent Cheney residents.

“All five of them were much loved in the Cheney/Eastern Washington University community,” Abrams said.

The state spent about $350,000 on improvements along the route, including adding rumble strips along the shoulders and a center line between Cheney and I-90. It’s one of the few highways in the state to have both, said Enders.

The state also added more left-turn lanes and lighting, and passing is prohibited on the stretch between Cheney and the interstate.

The efforts have paid off.

On Thursday a sign on the highway touted 668 days free of serious accidents.

“We never expected to get that high of a number on that board,” Enders said.

Labor Day driving

Local gas prices are about 50 cents a gallon higher than they were at this time last year, but AAA predicts decreasing prices nationwide and steadying prices locally will encourage travelers to hit the road for Labor Day weekend trips.

In fact, the nationwide auto club is anticipating 35.2 million Americans will travel 50 miles or more over the holiday weekend, up 1.2 percent from last year.

Nearly 30 million of them will drive.

The average price for a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline was $2.97 in Coeur d’Alene Friday, and $3.15 in Spokane.

Drivers can take comfort in knowing that WSDOT will halt construction on most projects at noon on Friday to make Labor Day weekend travel a little easier.

Ah, fall is on its way

And that means construction projects are wrapping up instead of starting up.

Two big headache-inducing projects were largely completed last week.

In Spokane, the I-90 viaduct and downtown on-ramps and exits are back to normal.

And in Coeur d’Alene the Government Way Bridge reopened.

In south Spokane, paving on 37th Avenue is expected to wrap up by Wednesday, reopening that arterial.

And in Spokane Valley, Broadway Avenue paving is also complete, although some are unhappy with the new three-lane configuration (down from four).

Slow going

North Spokane

Monroe Street is under construction from Francis to Wall, where it does, in fact, intersect with Monroe. (Doubters please check a map.) Expect delays.

Rutter Parkway is open on a gravel road with a 25 mph speed limit and single-lane traffic. Flaggers will also be directing single-lane traffic most days on Highway 291 near Rutter Parkway. Expect delays.

Crestline Street is closed from Lincoln Road to Francis Avenue and from Wellesley Avenue to Decatur. Lincoln Road is closed from Napa Street to Crestline. Detours are in place. Francis Avenue is narrowed to one lane in each direction at Crestline.

West Dennison-Chattaroy Road is closed to all but local traffic between Highway 395 and Perry Road.

West Plains

Hayford Road is under construction from Highway 2 to Sprague Avenue.

South Spokane

U.S. Highway 195 construction between Rosalia and Plaza will reduce traffic to one lane from 7 a.m.-6 p.m. Flaggers and pilot cars will direct traffic.

Cedar Street will be reduced to one lane from Cheney-Spokane Road to Eagle Ridge, with northbound traffic detours.

Bernard Street is closed from 14th-29th avenues. Traffic is detoured to Grand Boulevard and Lincoln Street.

Freya Street reconstruction will close traffic to all but local access from Hartson and 11th Avenue and from 18th and 37th avenues. Detours are in place.

Regal Road is under construction from 57th to the Palouse Highway.

Spokane sweeping

Crews will sweep in the northwest in the areas from Wellesley to Rowan between Driscoll Boulevard and Monroe, and from “A” Street to Driscoll between Rowan and Francis, and from Francis to Wellesley between Division and Monroe; in the northeast from Wellesley to Illinois between Crestline and Hamilton/Nevada, and between Wellesley and Upriver Drive between Havana and Crestline; and on the South side, from Fifth to 14th between Grand and Monroe, and from Fifth to 29th between Monroe and Cannon, and from Fifth to 18th between Southeast Boulevard and Crestline.

Please move cars off the streets. For more information, call (509) 456-2666.

Spokane Valley/Liberty Lake

Argonne Road is under construction from 8 p.m.-6 a.m. from Indiana Avenue to Montgomery Avenue. Watch for flaggers.

The Park Road railway crossing just south of Trent is closed today from 8 a.m.-1 p.m.

Adams Road is closed from Fourth Avenue to Eighth Avenue.

Sprague Avenue is closed from Harmony Road to Hodges Road.

Indiana is closed from Arc to Barker.

Idaho

Prairie Avenue remains under construction between Ramsey and Huetter.

Construction on Lancaster Road between Government Way and Strahorn may cause delays.

Work on state Highway 200 in Ponderay could cause delays of up to 15 minutes over the next week.