 |
At an open house in June hosted
by WSDOT to share plans about
the upcoming tunnel project. |
Commuters on the ferry from Bremerton and other downtown drivers should be prepared for detours, which will last for as long as two years. Construction of a tunnel, planned for many years, gets underway in July. The $30.7 million federally financed project will construct a two-lane, 950-foot-long tunnel to take vehicles offloading from the ferry directly to State Route 304 and Burwell Street. Drivers will also be able to use the current route.
Project leaders say the change will help the area near the Bremerton Transportation Center become more pedestrian friendly and safer by diverting underground the rush of cars that comes from the ferry about every hour and 15 minutes.
“The basic concept is to separate vehicular traffic leaving the ferry terminal. It was determined that approximately 65 percent (of drivers) exiting the terminal will utilize the tunnel,” said Lynn Price, city project manager who is working on the project alongside Washington State Department of Transportation. “This will allow us to make pedestrian improvements.”
The tunnel will be built in stages and will have one basic detour throughout, though a minor change in the detour will occur during the second phase. Project managers say there will be access to the downtown and the transportation center at all times.
The tunnel project was initiated by the city of Bremerton, but it is being managed by the WSDOT since it’s located on state highway. The project had hit a snag earlier when bids from contractors came in higher than the top price set by the state. After changing the project’s specifications, which took down some costs, the state raised its cap to $28 million and sent it for rebid. Although the lower bid came in at $30.7 million, it was accepted. Congressman Norm Dicks, who secured funding for construction, reportedly said getting the additional funding should not be a problem.
Construction will entail digging a hole 35 feet deep, building walls, and then rebuilding the top. Price said a project that requires such massive excavating could pose problems such as old utility lines. “You never know what you can run into,” he said. “We did extensive studies and we feel pretty confident we’ve identified all the contamination and have already done some cleanup.”
Four buildings will be demolished, with the first demolition scheduled for July 9. | 