Grant Co. making progress on 6-year roads plan

EPHRATA – Grant County has updated a six-year Transportation Improvement Plan (TIP), as outlined in a signed resolution from 2025 to 2030, with drafts extending the resolution from 2025-2030 and drafts going into 2031.  

“If you look at our roads compared to other counties, we do have some of the nicest, safest (county) roads in the state,” said Grant County District 3 commissioner Cindy Carter. 

Carter said the TIP lists all the roads that the county has funding for or is working to get funding for in regard to updates and repairs over the next six years. Any projects on the list that do not reach completion this year will roll over into next year. 

“It’s just kind of an ongoing plan,” she said. 

Projects for 2025 consisted of Road W Southeast’s bridge 247 replacement, reconstruction on Grape Drive and Maple Drive, reconstruction on Stratford Road, Road 5 Northwest’s bridge 355 replacement,  Road 23 Northwest’s bridge 171 replacement, hot mix asphalt overlay at Road U Northeast, a safety project at Desert Aire Drive, gravel to oil at Road 7.8 Northeast and Road 5 Northeast, phase three on establishing road grade for Drumheller Road, and county wide safety signages on all roads. 

“We have completed our chip seal for the year and will hopefully have all the brooming of the chip seal completed this week,” said Grand County Public Works Director Andy Booth. “Stratford Road from the railroad tracks to Road 20 Northeast is currently being reconstructed.” 

Projects slated for 2026 consist of the reconstruction of Cochran Road, Ottmar Road, Road R Southwest, Road Q Southwest, Road W Northeast, resurfacing of Valley Road, and Bridge 110 reconstruction on Stratford and gravel to oil for Road 11 Southwest, Road 12 Northwest and Road H Southwest. 

Concerns about the road that acts as a direct route from Palisades in Douglas County to Ephrata and Soap Lake were shared by a resident of Palisades who said the road was dangerous, especially for vehicles hauling heavy loads. The TIP includes a project planned for Road 24 Northwest, which is the road on the Grant County side. 

“Road 24 Northwest is on our six-year Transportation Improvement Program plan for possible improvements in 2027,” said Booth. “This is not a guarantee of this project happening.” 

2027 also has reconstruction plans for Road K.7 Northeast and Grand Coulee Hill, along with the replacement of Bridge 248 at Road 11 Southeast. 

Grant County maintains over 2,500 miles of roads, according to the Grant County website. Many of these raids are also served by privately-owned access roads, maintained by homeowner's associations, private parties or other landowners.  

Many main roads throughout the county are also designed to be “All Weather,” where they can keep a road open for traffic even during the winter months where passage would normally cause severe damage to the road. The county will work along a maintenance schedule where they will go back over paved or gravel roads and redo them every few years, said Carter.  

The full resolution featuring the six-year TIP and a draft of the 2026-2031 report with more information on the proposed dates of projects in the county can be found at grantcountywa.gov under the Public Works’ Engineering tab.

TIP TIMELINE

2025 

├─ Bridge Replacements 

│   ├─ Bridge 247 (Road W SE) 

│   ├─ Bridge 355 (Road 5 NW) 

│   └─ Bridge 171 (Road 23 NW) 

├─ Road Reconstructions 

│   ├─ Stratford Road (RR tracks to Road 20 NE) 

│   ├─ Grape Drive 

│   └─ Maple Drive 

├─ Surface Improvements 

│   ├─ Road U NE (Hot Mix Asphalt Overlay) 

│   ├─ Road 7.8 NE (Gravel to Oil) 

│   └─ Road 5 NE (Gravel to Oil) 

├─ Safety & Infrastructure 

│   ├─ Desert Aire Drive (Pedestrian Safety Project) 

│   ├─ Drumheller Road (Phase 3 Grade Establishment) 

│   └─ Countywide Safety Signage Program 

2026 

├─ Road Reconstructions 

│   ├─ Cochran Road 

│   ├─ Ottmar Road 

│   ├─ Road R SW 

│   ├─ Road Q SW 

│   └─ Road W NE 

├─ Surface Improvements 

│   └─ Valley Road (Resurfacing) 

├─ Bridge Work 

│   └─ Bridge 110 (Stratford Road) 

├─ Gravel to Oil 

│   ├─ Road 11 SW 

│   ├─ Road 12 NW 

│   └─ Road H SW 

2027 

├─ Road Reconstructions 

│   ├─ Road K.7 NE 

│   └─ Grand Coulee Hill 

├─ Bridge Replacement 

│   └─ Bridge 248 (Road 11 SE) 

├─ Potential Project 

│   └─ Road 24 NW (Palisades Connector – Not Guaranteed) 

2028–2030 

├─ Projects TBD 

│   └─ Based on funding availability and rollover from prior years 

└─ Continued maintenance, overlays, and safety upgrades 

    Stratford Road was featured by Grant County Public Works as one of the roads to receive a sealcoat this year. Stratford Road also has multiple other projects in place, including reconstruction of Bridge 110.