SPOKANE, Wash. — Spring has sprung, and so have the road closure signs across Spokane.
With construction season here, the city and surrounding areas are seeing several construction projects. According to City of Spokane Communications Manager Kirstin Davis, there are at least ten projects currently underway within city limits alone.
“We'll probably end up being between 30 and 40 projects throughout the entire season,” Davis said.
One big reason behind so many projects is Mother Nature.
“We only get about nine months out of the year to get that work done because of the weather impacts that we have with winter," Davis said.
The city's not the only one with road work. Spokane County, Spokane Valley and the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) also have projects going on now.
That includes Monday’s closure of Euclid Avenue between North Market and North Ralph Streets as part of the highly anticipated North Spokane Corridor project.
WSDOT crews started rebuilding the road under the corridor’s newly constructed overpass and at the Burlington Northern Santa Fe railroad cross.
WSDOT Communications Manager Ryan Overton said this particular phase will include grinding out the existing asphalt, putting in permanent approaches and redoing the road.
“We're in a much more populated zone now than we were further up north,” Overton said. “So, people are seeing the progress. I think they're believing that we're actually going to get to the finish line. And we are! We're funded for completion.”
The work on this phase is expected to last into May. Overton said the complete project is expected to be done by 2030.
However, issues with drivers also caused the City of Spokane to make changes to one of their projects. City officials closed off the 29th to 30th Avenue section of Perry Street due to too many close calls.
“It's the inattentiveness and the speed that are the biggest problems,” said Davis.
Davis told KREM 2 the Perry Street section's the only one they've seen issues with, but she reminds everyone to drive slow and be cautious when going through work zones.
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