Oregon Transportation Department contractors work on a sidewalk upgrade in Enterprise in 2020. Crews will begin a similar effort in Vale beginning next week. (Photo courtesy of the state Transportation Department).
VALE – The state Transportation Department will start a project next week in Vale to install new sidewalk curb ramps.
The project is expected to construct or upgrade more than 200 ramps to meet Americans with Disabilities Act standards.
Crews will begin putting up traffic signs beginning Monday with construction to begin soon after, said Tom Strandberg, public information officer for the Transportation Department.
Later this year, the Transportation Department will undertake a similar project in Nyssa, Strandberg said.
The work in Vale will be focused on U.S. Highway 26 and Ellsworth Street before moving to U.S. Highway 20 between North 10th Street and Viking Drive.
The project probably won’t make a big impact on Vale residents, said Strandberg.
“There might be areas where they have to close part of a lane down, but mainly it will be sidewalk closures. We will have flaggers and traffic control and detours and barriers up,” said Strandberg.
The work is expected to be finished by November. HP Civil Inc. of Stayton is the contractor.
The project is a result of settlement in 2016 between the Transportation Department and the Association of Oregon Centers for Independent Living and eight people with mobility and visual impairments.
As part of the settlement, the Transportation Department agreed to meet Americans with Disabilities Act requirements over a 15-year period across the state, with most of the curb ramp renovation work complete by 2027.
News tip? Contact reporter Pat Caldwell at [email protected]
Previous coverage:
State eyes roundabout as fix at Cairo Junction
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