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by | Mar 16, 2018 | Hosta

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The Richard Odabashian Bridge, formerly the Olds Station Bridge, is a box girder bridge crossing the Columbia River in Wenatchee, Washington, United States. It carries four lanes of U.S. Route 2 (US 2) and US 97, as well as a bicycle and pedestrian pathway that is part of the Apple Capital Recreation Loop Trail. The 1,400-foot (430 m) bridge opened in 1975 and is located north of downtown Wenatchee at Olds Station.

History

A bridge crossing the Columbia River in Sunnyslope north of Wenatchee had been proposed since the 1960s to bypass a section of US 2 through downtown Wenatchee that crossed the Columbia River on the Senator George Sellar Bridge.[3] Early proposals favored a bridge at either Walla Walla Point in northern Wenatchee or Olds Station on the north side of the Wenatchee River; the latter option won out. Construction began in 1971 and was completed in 1975, including a narrow bicycle/pedestrian trail and two highway lanes, which were later expanded to four. The bridge was dedicated by 300 people, including local mayors and state highway officials, on September 5, 1975.[4] US 2 was re-routed onto the bridge and the old alignment later became State Route 285.[citation needed]

The bridge was renamed in May 1991 for Richard Odabashian, a state transportation commissioner from Cashmere.[3] The pedestrian trail on the bridge was originally 5 feet (1.5 m) wide until it was expanded to 10 feet (3.0 m) in 2001, to eliminate a major bottleneck on the Apple Capital Recreation Loop Trail and allow bicycles to pass.[5]

References

  1. ^ Bridge and Structures Office (November 2017). "Bridge List, M23-09.08" (PDF). Washington State Department of Transportation. p. 83. Retrieved August 22, 2018.
  2. ^ Federal Highway Administration. "Bridge Reports: US 2 over Columbia River". National Bridge Inventory. Bridge Reports. Retrieved August 22, 2018.
  3. ^ a b Barta, Linda (May 13, 2016). "Old news: 25 years ago, 1991". The Wenatchee World.
  4. ^ Kraft, Dave (September 7, 1975). "New bridge hailed as tribute to cooperation". The Wenatchee World. p. 1.
  5. ^ Smith, Laurie (November 5, 2001). "More room to run, ride or roll: Pedestrian crossing widened across Odabashian Bridge". The Wenatchee World. p. A1.
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