Road work to begin on Route 282 in Ephrata
Casey McCarthy/Columbia Basin Herald The overpass that begins at the intersection of Basin Street Southwest and state Route 282 in Ephrata will be closed from June 19-22 for construction.
EPHRATA — The overpass that begins at the intersection of Basin Street Southwest and state Route 282 will be closed June 19-22 to allow the SR-282 to be resurfaced.
The section of SR-282 from the Basin Street intersection to the junction with state Route 17 — about five miles — will be resurfaced with chip-seal, beginning with the overpass.
Lauren Loebsack, communications manager for Washington Department of Transportation Region 6, said the SR-282 will be closed between Basin Street and the Dodson Road roundabout. Drivers won’t be able to use the Dodson Road-A Street/SR-282 intersection for that weekend, and will have to use a detour via Nat Washington Way.
After the overpass is done and reopened, there will be traffic delays on SR-282 as crews continue working their way toward SR-17.
Chip-sealing uses a mix of rock and tar to resurface a road without removing sections of the existing pavement.
The estimated cost of the project is $1.1 million, Loebsack said.
The resurfacing of SR-282 is the only new DOT project scheduled for 2020 in Region 6, which includes Grant County and a portion of Adams County.
The DOT is working on a roundabout at state Route 24 and Bench Road near Othello, she said, but that project was shut down when state officials restricted movement and activity as part of the effort to combat the COVID-19 outbreak.
Loebsack said construction on the roundabout had reached the point where vehicles could use the intersection. The project is scheduled to resume June 22, for any repairs needed and adding signs, pavement markings and lights. Department of Transportation officials hope to have the roundabout finished by the end of June, Loebsack said.
Department of Transportation officials have announced plans to add a roundabout at SR-282 and Nat Washington Way in Ephrata. Loebsack said that project is not on the 2020 construction schedule.
A roundabout also is planned at Grape Drive and SR-17 in Moses Lake. That project is in the design and planning stage. Construction is tentatively planned for 2022.
Cheryl Schweizer can be reached via email at [email protected].