Closure of at-risk roadway will cause miles of detour

A culvert replacement project is about to cut off a lifeline for Duvall residents and commuters.

Highway 203, the main route running through Duvall, is at risk of collapse the next time the area gets a big rain storm because the culvert under the highway can’t handle the load. The culvert gets blocked easily and the water from Coe-Clemons Creek is undercutting the highway.

“The water is building up in that creek and completely overwhelming that culvert,” said Kris Olsen with the Washington State Department of Transportation. “The only thing holding it back is that road. So we need to replace that culvert so water goes under the road, instead of eroding the banks.”

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In order to prevent further erosion, WSDOT is replacing the current culvert with a larger one. The new culvert will be 25 feet wide and 12 feet high.

There are only a few hundred yards around the front of Taylor Park, but because the Snoqualmie River is right next to the highway, there is really nowhere to go. Drivers will need to take a lengthy detour.

Intermittent closures will begin Aug. 3. An eight-day closure for culvert work will be from Aug. 17-25.

The project will take drivers about six miles out of their way, essentially from one bridge over the river to the next.

“The most important thing is really that through-traffic take the signed detour over to the west to West Snoqualmie Valley Road,” Olsen said.

Drivers will go over the river at Duvall-Woodinville Road, down West Snoqualmie Valley Road, and cross the river on 124th.

It should add an extra 10 minutes to commute, depending on traffic.