on I-205 path.
(Photo © J. Maus)
Thanks to the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (a.k.a. the federal stimulus bill), the bike and pedestrian path that runs along Interstate 205 will be getting a $2.5 million makeover.
Most of the money will go toward new lighting on a 3.6 mile stretch of the path from SE Sunnyside Road to SE Woodstock (I hope it doesn’t attract vandals), but according to ODOT spokesperson Christine Miles there’s more in store than just improved illumination.
Miles says that at an upcoming groundbreaking event for the project slated for June 17th, ODOT and TriMet (they put in over $500,000 for the project) will unveil detailed plans that will include “a whole new look” for bikers at the notorious point where the path hits SE Woodstock and Foster.
The project overlaps with TriMet’s existing I-205 Light Rail project.
The project calls for a new bike bridge (at the same level as the new light rail bridge) to go up and over Woodstock and Foster. Miles also said that the path will be widened from its existing 10-feet to 12-feet from SE Sunnyside to SE Woodstock.
To kick off the project, a groundbreaking event will be held on June 17th. According to an invite for the event, reps from ODOT, Clackamas County, the City of Portland, the Bicycle Transportation Alliance and TriMet will all be in attendance. Miles says more details on the project will be available at that time.
This $2.5 million project was the only bike-related project funded with ODOT’s $224 federal economic stimulus allocation (see what else they did with the money here). The project will create an esimated 35 jobs and the path expansion is slated to be complete by the end of July.
- I-205 Path Project Groundbreaking
Wednesday, June 17, 10 a.m.
The multi-use path just north of SE Sunnyside Rd.
Please R.S.V.P. to Monika Lackey at lackeym@trimet.org or 503-962-2244