July 7, 2021
Page 5
Bridge Installation to Close I-84
Two photos from ODOT show the Blumenauer Pedestrian and Bicycle Bridge worksite (left) and an artist rendering of the finished bridge.
Weekend work
will impact
freeway in
both directions
After over a year of con-
struction, a new pedestrian
bridge over I-84, connect-
ing the Lloyd District of
northeast Portland with the
Central Eastside is ready for
installation, work that will
close both directions of the
freeway over this coming
weekend.
Both eastbound and west-
bound I-84 will be closed
around the clock from 10
p.m. Friday, July 9 to 5 a.m.
Monday, July 12. People
driving should expect delays
and use alternate routes or
ways of getting around, such
as walking, biking, or taking
transit.
Named the Congressman
Earl Blumenauer Pedestrian
and Bicycle Bridge for the
Portland Democrat’s long
record of support for alter-
native methods of transpor-
tation, the approximately
800,000 pound and 400-foot-
long bridge will be lifted and
rolled into place over Sulli-
van’s Gulch at Northeast 7th
Avenue.
The bridge will then be at-
tached to a temporary tower
between the I-84 freeway and
railroad tracks, officials said.
Following the initial bridge
installation, crews will con-
nect the bridge to the north
landing. In the future it will
also serve as an important
link for Portland’s Green
Loop.
When it opens in early
2022, the bridge will be seis-
mically resilient and serve as
a backup route for emergency
vehicles over I-84 in the event
of an earthquake. In addition
to the bridge, the project in-
cludes two new public plazas
and landings on the north and
south sides of the bridge.