News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
News, views and advertising of the Grand Coulee Dam Area
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Cars wait to turn right at the red light on River Drive in Coulee Dam to cross the bridge. A sign advising drivers that no right turn is allowed when the light is red, but police have been ticketing drivers for violations. One officer wrote five tickets in one day after meeting someone on the one-lane bridge under construction, turning on his emergency lights, and backing them all the way off the bridge. - Scott Hunter photo
Emergency bridge repairs on State Route 155 in Coulee Dam have switched from daytime work to nighttime work for one week.
The Columbia River Bridge is closing each evening from 11 p.m. to 6 a.m. from Monday, Aug. 17 through Saturday, Aug. 22, with brief reopenings every hour on the hour. Travelers should plan for delays of up to one hour. The bridge will reopen during daytime hours, still one lane.
Starting Monday, Aug. 24, work is expected to return to daytime hours with delays up to 10 minutes. Construction will pause for the season at the end of August, and crews will return in 2027 to fully restore the bridge, the Washington State Department of Transportation said.
An agreement reportedly reached with the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation will allow emergency vehicles to cross the river on the bridge over Grand Coulee Dam if needed during closures, both Grand Coulee's Fire Department and the Colville Tribal Health Care Authority stated on their Facebook pages this week.
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