The Portland Bureau of Transportation may be reopening a fourth lane on the North Going Street Bridge before the Thanksgiving holiday.
North Going Street Bridge provides the only public access to Swan Island, a key industrial area in North Portland.
Map by Portland Bureau of Transportation and Google Maps
The bridge's support columns were damaged Sept. 7 due to a Union Pacific train derailment. Since mid-September, three lanes of traffic have been open — down from the bridge's normal six lanes.
PBOT received approval from Union Pacific to begin the repair work on Monday.
The bridge provides the only public access to the Swan Island industrial area, which is home to about 200 businesses.
Travel times out of the industrail area have varied unpredictably with the lane closures, PBOT said.
“Numerous businesses have changed work schedules for hundreds of employees to avoid rush-hour congestion,” PBOT said in a news release. “Deliveries have been delayed. People have reported road rage incidents and car crashes.”
PBOT hopes for permanent repairs to fully restore the bridge’s six lanes to potentially be completed by this spring.