Getting There: Spokane street work wrapping up for season
Two of the worst construction traffic jams in Spokane this year will be coming to an end soon with final paving and concrete work underway this week.
Traffic has been backing up on southbound Monroe Street at Second Avenue for the past few months while workers rebuild the street and install sidewalks and stormwater facilities.
Lincoln Avenue northbound at Interstate 90 has also seen backups.
In southeast Spokane, traffic on Ray Street from 17th to 29th avenues has been going slow since last summer due to a repaving job.
Starting Tuesday, workers will do final asphalt paving on Lincoln and Monroe from Second to Fourth. They will pave the two streets in segments of a half at a time. Once one side is completed, they will switch to the other side.
The $4.5 million project is being financed by a street levy and utility money.
On Ray, paving is finished but workers are completing traffic islands Monday.
While a single lane is open in each direction, full completion on Ray Street is expected Tuesday. After that, crews will reopen all four lanes.
Elsewhere in the city, crews are holding back on leaf cleanup to allow time for more leaves to come off trees. A schedule for leaf pickup should be available this week.
Hartson Avenue from Altamont to Fiske streets is tentatively set to reopen Friday following a project to install stormwater.
STA offers real-time bus info
On Thursday, Spokane Transit Authority will go live with a redesigned website that will use responsive Web design technology. That will allow use of the site on all types of devices, STA officials said.
The website now provides real-time bus arrivals and departures at any stop in its system using new “smart bus” technologies.
Many riders are not yet aware they can track their buses instantly online by going to STA’s trip planner.
In other STA news, the agency is planning its second annual free-fare day for Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving.
STA also is launching a promotion campaign with retailers to highlight shopping and holiday events accessible by transit.
Cheney closures planned
In Cheney, work on rail crossing replacements will cause closures this week.
On Wednesday and Thursday, Paradise Road just west of state Highway 904 will be closed. A detour will be posted.
On Friday and Saturday, the closure will involve Jensen Road to the west of Highway 904.
The work is part of a project to improve the short line track serving a new wheat transloader facility just north of Four Lakes. The new track will be capable of carrying heavier 110-car unit trains filled with Columbia Basin wheat.
U.S. 195 project is done
Elsewhere on state highways, the pavement repair and replacement project on U.S. Highway 195 from Interstate 90 to Excelsior Road is finished.
To the west, work has been winding down for this season on widening I-90 on the east side of Snoqualmie Pass. All rock blasting closures have ended for the season. Minor delays are still possible, however.
Part of Centennial Trail closed
In Spokane Valley, the Centennial Trail is closed around the clock at the Sullivan Road Bridge through mid-December for safety reasons during the bridge replacement project.