Crews are wrapping up a set of road improvements on C Street designed to improve traffic flow in downtown Vancouver.
The project also changed how C Street functions: Restriping changed its orientation to one-way, northbound traffic to Eighth Street. Previously, two-way traffic extended as far south as Seventh Street. Extra signs now warn drivers of the change, a full block before the ramp that dumps cars from state Highway 14 onto C Street going north.
Crews also installed a concrete island near the intersection of C and Eighth streets, and will shift parallel parking on C Street from the east side of the street to the west side between Evergreen Boulevard and 11th Street. That striping should be finished by the end of this week or early next week, according to the city.
Though existing signage and pavement markings met state and federal standards, the city decided to see what else it could do to make the area safer, said public works spokeswoman Loretta Callahan. Instances of wrong-way drivers entering Highway 14 and causing crashes occurred as recently as last year, but the city didn’t have any indication that it was a major problem, Callahan said.
City crews completed the work in-house, and did not take bids on the project. A cost estimate will be available when it’s finished, Callahan said.
