The project, paid for with federal and county money, was supposed to be completed in mid-December, but design difficulties and construction delays pushed the opening back. One of the biggest design challenges was how to create a crash barrier that could work on a drawbridge.
The two-way path runs on the south side of the bridge, connecting with Water Avenue on the east side and with ramps to Southwest Alder Street and to Naito Parkway on the west side. It replaces a narrow sidewalk that was just 5 feet wide.
The new Morrison Bridge path should also help reduce conflicts for cyclists and pedestirans by absorbing some of the heavy bike and pedestrian traffic from the Broadway and Hawthorne briges.
For motorists, the new off-ramp will make the drive to the east side easier, according to Multnomah County spokesman Mike Pullen.
“It used to be that the off-ramp to Water was combined with a dominant freeway ramp,” Pullen said. “Now, you don’t have to worry about that freeway traffic. Things are separated.”
Here's a qick look at the new path, courtesy of the Oregonian's Joeseph Rose:
| A tour of the Morrison Bridge bike, ped path |
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