Washington state Department of Transportation (WSDOT) crews completed a project Oct. 22 to patch a hole on the deck of the Yale Bridge, connecting Clark and Cowlitz counties on state Route 503.
Currently, WSDOT is short on funds for bridge preservation work, and no additional work is planned for the bridge in the near future, said Kelly Hanahan, WSDOT Southwest Region communications manager, in an email. WSDOT does not have a timeline for future bridge replacement work at this time, nor what additional work may look like. The Washington legislature allocates funding for WSDOT road maintenance.
In 2016, the bridge was freshly paved using $260,000 in preservation funds, Hanahan stated. From 2017-21, maintenance crews applied minor patches to the bridge deck asphalt, as needed. In 2021, maintenance crews applied a product called Mastic One to patch and repair the entire stretch of bridge deck asphalt. Crews also tightened the deck boards, Hanahan added.
To reduce stress and slow the process of wear and tear on the bridge, for over 20 years, WSDOT enacted a weight restriction requiring one vehicle to cross the bridge at a time. Due to increasing traffic levels in recent years, however, fewer people are complying with those weight restriction requirements, Hanahan stated.
“WSDOT teams were concerned [a lack of compliance] would lead to additional structural damage and requested [Washington State Patrol] presence to enforce the weight restriction at one point,” she stated. “WSP is stretched thin for resources, and routine presence or enforcement in the area is not possible.”
Due to the lack of compliance by bridge utilizers, in May 2021, a biannual inspection revealed the bridge deck and supporting structures sustained severe damage. In July 2021, an all-way stop was implemented in an effort to persuade the public to adhere to the bridge weight restriction by only allowing one vehicle to cross the bridge at a time. This decision was made in hopes of preventing additional structural damage.
Three years later, a member of the public covered the existing signs at each end of the bridge reading “ONE VEHICLE AT A TIME” with a sticker stating “DIRECTION” overlaid over the word “VEHICLE,” causing problems, Hanahan stated. Those stickers were later removed.
“This sign modification causes an operational issue with how vehicles stop (or don’t) to cross the bridge and further exacerbates the condition of the bridge,” she stated. “WSDOT removed the stickers because it violates the weight restriction essential to keeping the bridge open and operational.”
Hanahan added that the biggest challenge the bridge faces is drivers following the weight restrictions by only crossing one at a time. The weight restriction to extend the life of the bridge is important, especially during a time where WSDOT is only funded at 40% of what is needed to preserve the roadway system in the state of Washington, she stated.
“The weight restriction has been established to allow for safe usage of the facility and to extend the life of the structure. WSDOT does not want to move towards a situation that requires preservation project costs that cannot be funded,” she said. “The worst possible situation is the bridge is eventually closed until funds are identified to repair or replace the structure.”
The Yale Bridge connects Clark County to both the Yale and Cougar communities, along with a number of recreational activities at Merwin, Yale and Swift lakes, the southern side of Mount St. Helens and more.
“While this is a critically important issue for the Yale community, there are many priorities for both preservation and maintenance dollars in the Southwest Region and across the state,” Hanahan said. “The focus of WSDOT maintenance is keeping the roads safe and operational (filling potholes, monitoring bridge needs, weather response, guardrail repair, summer paving, landscaping, etc.), and they do not take on preservation efforts like rehabilitation or replacement.”
According to Hanahan, the simplest message to the public is: “Without compliance of the weight restriction, the Yale community could lose access to the bridge and need to wait in a long line of other statewide project priorities, which could take years or decades.”
