ROAD REPORT: Aug. 1, 2025
CHERYL SCHWEIZER | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 9 months, 1 week AGO
Construction crews work on removing the top layer of asphalt from a section of Interstate 90 at the Mae Valley exit near Moses Lake Thursday.
CHERYL SCHWEIZER/COLUMBIA BASIN HERALD
Onramps and offramps will be closed temporarily through the end of the construction season as part of the I-90 project
Senior Reporter Cheryl Schweizer is a journalist with more than 30 years of experience serving small communities in the Pacific Northwest. She began her post-high-school education at Treasure Valley Community College and enerned her journalism degree at Oregon State University. After working for multiple publications, she has settled down at the Columbia Basin Herald and has been a staple of the newsroom for more than a decade. Schweizer’s dedication to her communities and profession has earned her the nickname “The Baroness of Bylines.” She covers a variety of beats including health, business and various municipalities. | August 1, 2025 2:30 AM
MOSES LAKE — Drivers should be ready for single lane traffic, delays and temporary ramp closures along sections of Interstate 90 between Dodson Road and Road O Northeast. Sections of the road and the access ramps are being repaved, with the work expected to continue through the end of the construction season.
The section of I-90 from Dodson to Mae Valley will be repaved in the eastbound lanes only, while Mae Valley to Road O NE will be both eastbound and westbound lanes. Crews will be working Monday through Thursday until after Labor Day, then switch to Monday through Friday through the end of the construction season.
Crews will be working from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. through Labor Day. The speed limit will be reduced to 40 to 55 miles per hour in the construction zone.
It’s the first year of a two-year project to repave sections of I-90 from the Vantage Bridge to Road O Northeast. Total project cost is $22 million.
Other road projects in Grant and Adams counties include:
Construction of a roundabout at the intersection of State Route 26 and South First Avenue in Othello begins Monday. Crews will be working from 7 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. Drivers should be prepared for delays, flaggers, one-way traffic and designated detours through and around Othello.
Drivers should expect delays outside of work hours, since the temporary signals will be in place 24/7. Completion is expected in mid-October. Project cost is $3.2 million.
State Route 28 is closed at its intersection with Nat Washington Way in Ephrata as crews install a roundabout as part of the construction of the new Grant County Jail. Construction began July 21 and is scheduled to last eight weeks. Project cost is estimated at $4 million.
There is a recommended detour route using Airport Road SE to Fifth Avenue Southeast to Nat Washington Way. The detour route includes residential streets and A Street Southeast, which provides access to Ephrata Middle School. Drivers are asked to exercise caution and watch for pedestrians in residential neighborhoods and be prepared for a lot of traffic at A Street SE and Nat Washington Way once school starts.
Work is scheduled to start in late August on a project to resurface Moses Lake’s downtown section, East Hill Avenue and East Wheeler Road. A roundabout will be added at the intersection of Wheeler and Road L Northeast.
The top layer of existing pavement will be removed, cracks will be repaired and the road resurfaced. Streets in the downtown section that have two lanes in each direction will be revised to have one lane in each direction and a left turn lane. Sections of Wheeler Road will continue to have two lanes in each direction, but the Road L Northeast roundabout will be one lane in each direction.
Onramps and offramps will be closed temporarily through the end of the construction season as part of the I-90 projectARTICLES BY CHERYL SCHWEIZER
BBCC student information not hacked during computer shutdown
MOSES LAKE — Personal information of Big Bend Community College students was not compromised as the result of a cyberattack against a company that provides system management software. Matt Killebrew, BBCC director of communications, said the college does use the Canvas system, which allows students to access class and financial information, and communicate with instructors, among other things. The company that owns the Canvas system was hacked in early May, according to information on the Wired website. “We still don’t know who did it, but we do know no important information was accessed,” Killebrew said.
No injuries reported in aircraft emergency landing
WILSON CREEK — No injuries were reported in the emergency landing of an aircraft along Road P.5 Northeast about 11 miles south of Wilson Creek Friday morning.
Road closure starts Monday near Othello
OTHELLO — Drivers should prepare for delays on State Route 17 at the intersection with West Cunningham Road in Othello as construction of a new roundabout gets to the cutting-pavement and construction stage.