From the Port Townsend Leader

Back with a bridge: 60,000 rode with Jefferson Transit; buses to be in use a day longer than water shuttles

By Patrick J. Sullivan of The Leader

We'll soon be done talking about the Hood Canal Bridge closure - because the bridge will be open.

The final tests of the new east-half drawspan, requiring eight to 10 hours, were being started at 11 a.m. Wednesday, not Tuesday as hoped. When the inspection is passed, state crews and contractors open the world's longest floating bridge over saltwater - without fanfare or delay.

"I wish I could say a date and time," said Becky Hixson, manager of the Washington State Department of Transportation's bridge project. "Everybody wants to know, but we don't know until the tests are complete."

Still, fliers were being prepared Tuesday for Hood Canal water shuttle riders outlining the options with the bridge opening imminent.

If the bridge opens during the night after water shuttle service between South Point and Lofall has stopped, the boats will NOT resume the next morning. Instead, buses will transport riders between the Shine Pit and Port Gamble park-and-rides or the other normal Starline route stops: Silverdale, Poulsbo, Bainbridge ferry, Kingston ferry.

If the bridge opens to traffic during the daytime, the normal water-shuttle and bus operations continue through that day, with only the bus options available a second day.

"We will take people between the park-and-rides on a bus; it will be faster and it will get you to the normal stops," Hixson said.

"The key message is: For a couple days after the closure we're going to be around to help people get around," Hixson added.

The Port Townsend-Edmonds Twilight ferry service will end with the run scheduled for the day the bridge opens, according to Washington State Ferries. The large boats are needed back on the Kingston-Edmonds run as quickly as possible once the bridge is open to traffic.



Drawspan test

The bridge closed to traffic May 1 so the east-half pontoons and other structures dating to 1961 could be replaced, extending the floating span's serviceable life. The six-week contract with Kiewit-General was extended three days due to windy weather, but it is still finishing ahead of schedule.

Traffic signs and lights were being installed along the new roadway Tuesday afternoon while the drawspan was being aligned. The 1,400-item checklist to prepare for the actual drawspan test was down to 200 items Tuesday morning. "Crews have been working almost clear through the night the last couple of nights," Hixson noted.

Functional testing of the bridge finished at 10:45 p.m. Tuesday. The 20 consecutive draw span test cycles (open and close is one cycle) are scheduled to start at 11 a.m. today, Wednesday, the WSDOT announced this morning. The tests are expected to take anywhere from 8-10 hours, but this timeframe is wholly dependent on how things go, according to the WSDOT. If one of the cycles fails or raises concern, the whole process starts over.
Check ptleader.com and dial 511 for bridge updates.



Jefferson Transit

People don't have to collect their vehicle from the Shine Pit Park-and-Ride immediately. The Jefferson County Sheriff's Office, by contract, will provide overnight security at Shine Pit for seven days following the bridge's reopening. WSDOT officials have previously said people would have two weeks before each of the two park-and-rides is officially closed.

"Other than some flat tires and dead batteries, it's been very quiet," Mike Pollack of Jefferson Transit said about any security issues at Shine Pit Park-and-Ride. "There was one domestic squabble and a few teenagers hanging around one Saturday evening, but they were quickly and professionally handled by JCSO."

In one month of service, Jefferson Transit has handled more than 60,000 riders, more than 350 bicyclists and 50 people in wheelchairs.

"We very much appreciate the good humor and patience of our ridership with the inconvenience of the bridge being closed," said Pollack, who managed the special transit plan for Jefferson Transit. "My Jefferson/Canal Transit Team has gone to great lengths to give friendly and professional service, and we've been rewarded with an equally friendly response from the public."

Pollack said several passengers, in anticipating the bridge reopening this week, have said they will miss their daily "social hour" on the bus and water shuttle.

"Others have commented on how they've saved hundreds of dollars in the month of May on fuel costs. These both bode well for increased ridership on Jefferson Transit after the HCB reopens," Pollack noted.

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