Last modified: Sunday, August 3, 2008 12:11 AM PDT Work on removing the old bridge at the North Ontario Interchange takes place at night, so it is at about sunset when a large crane moves in to start picking away pieces of the bridge. Decade of area road projects coming to a close BY LARRY MEYER ARGUS OBSERVER ONTARIO — As completion of the North Ontario Interchange nears, almost obliterating the original one approximately 50 years old, the Oregon Department of Transportation is wrapping up nearly a decade of construction projects that have changed the looks, if not the landscape, of local communities. While work on some of these projects started in 2002, planning began long before then. With the new bridge over the freeway at the North Ontario Interchange now open to traffic, the bridge crew has turned its attention to dismantling the old one, a process that is expected to take until at least Thursday, according to Teresa Bock, ODOT assistant project manager. Once Idaho Construction has finished removing the old bridge, Kerr Contractors, the general contractor, will resume work on the project to complete the last details. That will include putting down the final lift or top layer of asphalt on the approaches and through the intersection at Washington Street. “The (lane) configuration will remain the same,� Bock said, about the interchange. For motorists traveling south off the interchange, there will be a left turn lane onto Washington toward downtown and a right lane for through traffic or vehicles turning right. Some work still needs to be done under the bridge, Bock said, as well as final work on the westbound on and off ramps. The contract for the project runs until Oct. 31, Bock said. “We’re thinking he will be done by the end of September,� she said of the contractor. While no incentives were included in the contract to finish early, Bock said there are several benefits to finishing early, such as being freed up to move on to other projects. Plans also call for signal lights at the intersection, but Bock said that will come later as electrical parts are installed. Other local transportation projects in the area include repairs on the eastbound bridge over the Snake River on I-84, which is to be completed this year, and the construction of a new Snake River bridge at Weiser, which is an Idaho Transportation Department project. While some other future projects are slated for the area, most of the major projects have been done. Downtown corridors in Nyssa and Vale were revamped with new sidewalks, curbs and gutters, plus new street lamps. Both communities had bridge work done at their approaches. Ontario has seen three major projects, including the railroad overpass on Southwest 18th Avenue, completion of the Yturri Memorial Beltline, which is now tied into the North Interchange, the third project, as originally planned. However, design and funding issues kept the projects separate. Projects still to come include an extra eastbound passing lane for trucks on Three-Mile Hill and reconstruction of the intersection of U.S. Highway 20/26 and Columbia Avenue. Both projects are scheduled for next year.