Dodson bridge to remain open while nearby overpasses face issues

ROYAL CITY — The Hansen Road bridge over Interstate 90 may be scheduled for demolition; the Adams Road bridge might be closed and in need of repairs, the Hiawatha Road bridge might need monitoring. But the Dodson Road overpass is open and in relatively good repair.  

Chris Keifenheim, regional administrator for the Washington Department of Transportation North Central region, said the difference is partly a function of age. 

“The Dodson Road bridge was built in 1993, so it is 35 years younger than Hansen, Adams and Hiawatha,” Keifenheim wrote in response to a question from the Columbia Basin Herald. “It was in much better condition than those three when it was last inspected in September 2025.”  

The Hansen Road bridge was closed in January after inspectors discovered significant damage to the bridge deck and supporting pillars. The Adams Road bridge east of Quincy was closed to traffic March 4, with an inspection pending to determine what’s necessary to repair or replace it.  

Keifenheim said that while increased traffic on Hansen Road hasn’t helped its condition, that’s not cause of its condition. 

“We would likely have been in the position regardless of the additional traffic due to the lack of funding for maintenance and preservation,” he said. 

With Hansen Road closed, Hiawatha Road is the primary detour route for residents of Mae Valley and the neighborhoods south of I-90. It needed repairs to its bridge deck in early February, and Keifenheim said last week that Hiawatha Road will be monitored throughout the reconstruction of Hansen Road. 

“That bridge has seen some deterioration as well. We are monitoring that closely with the intent to keep that bridge in full operation during the detour,” Keifenheim told Moses Lake City Council members March 10.  

Money is included in the Hansen Road project for repairs to Hiawatha Road if they’re needed, he said. 

The original estimate was that repairs to the bridge would take about a year, and replacement would take about two years. Ultimately, DOT officials opted to replace the bridge and spend the money needed to accelerate the replacement timeline.  

Department of Transportation officials haven’t given a cost estimate. The need to replace the bridge came in the second year of a two-year budget, and 13th District representative Alex Ybarra, R-Quincy, said most of the money for repairs in the 2025-27 budget was already allocated.  

“This isn’t new funding. Basically, we’re displacing funding that was going to other projects around the state in order to make this happen on this timeline,” Keifenheim said. 

Typically the bridges would have a lifespan of about 75 years, and Keifenheim said that with proper maintenance, bridges will last longer than that. The problem has been proper maintenance, he said. 

“We would like to do all the maintenance and preservation so all our bridges can make or exceed their 75-year design life. With the current transportation budget, that has not been the case,” he said. 

Representative Tom Dent, R-Moses Lake, who represents the 13th District and is on the House Transportation Committee, said WSDOT is one of many agencies needing money, and it has other demands on its time and money.  

“We are (funding) maintenance and preservation work – it's not enough,” Dent said. “Why aren’t we doing enough? Well, because we fell behind. Why did we fall behind? Because, I guess, we couldn’t keep the budgets higher.” 

Dent said determining funding levels is a balancing act.  

“Some of us wanted more money in preservation but there are other people who want (funding) somewhere else,” he said. “That’s kind of how it is. That’s the challenge we’re faced with right now is, how can we do these things?”