YACHATS – It’s done. They’re in.
Crews from Newport-based Road & Driveway created a five-foot-wide asphalt path along U.S. Highway 101 on the south side of town Wednesday and installed 36 delineators Thursday to finish a long-awaited city project designed to help protect pedestrians.
The delineators are 25 feet apart on the west side of the highway from Yachats River Road to just shy of Lori Lane. The waist-high and highly-durable reflective delineators help separate pedestrians from highway traffic.
The project has been a priority for the city’s Public Works & Streets Commission and the many residents or visitors who walk the highway into downtown.
“It has been in the works for about three years,” said Rick McClung, who oversees street and water projects for Yachats.
The Yachats city council approved a $74,000 contract in September with Road & Driveway to do the work. The only other bid the city received came from Knife River at $131,000.
“There is a contingency in there of $15,000 so we will see if they used it,” McClung said.
The delineators are bolted into holders attached to the pavement just inside the highway’s white fog line. When – not if – a vehicle knocks one out they can simply be unbolted and replaced.
Whether the earthen bank that runs along a stretch of the project area will need to be shaved back to ensure the five-foot width required by the Americans with Disabilities Act, will not be known until the inspection after the delineators are set, McClung said.
Two years ago, it was estimated the project would cost $40,000. The city applied for a grant from the Oregon Department of Transportation for that amount and received it. The subsequent increase in cost is attributed to the possible excavation work. ODOT approved permits for the work Aug. 13.
“ODOT will reimburse the city at least $40,000 for the project,” McClung said. “And when it’s done, I will request more and see what they say.”
While this is great and much needed, my concern is durability and flexibility. How quickly will they be replaced. Take a look at Ocean View Drive with all the broken delineators which get continually broken and stay that way for long periods of time.
Congratulations to the Public Works and Streets Commission! And kudos for the diligent work of the City Council and Mayor Birdie and City Manager Bobbi Price. More pedestrian safety improvements are needed in Yachats. It shouldn’t take three years to accomplish these improvements. Safety for residents and citizens should be a priority for every decision maker, from the city to the county to the state.
Now we need them throughout 101 and east 20 where the 90% of fatalities happen every year.
Fantastic! This was long needed and kudos to the town in making the trip to and from the South of the Bridge safer.