By GARRET JAROS/YachatsNews
YACHATS – It’s done. They’re in.
Crews from Newport-based Road & Driveway created a five-foot-wide asphalt path along U.S. Highway 101 on the south side of town Wednesday and installed 36 delineators Thursday to finish a long-awaited city project designed to help protect pedestrians.
The delineators are 25 feet apart on the west side of the highway from Yachats River Road to just shy of Lori Lane. The waist-high and highly-durable reflective delineators help separate pedestrians from highway traffic.
The project has been a priority for the city’s Public Works & Streets Commission and the many residents or visitors who walk the highway into downtown.
“It has been in the works for about three years,” said Rick McClung, who oversees street and water projects for Yachats.
The Yachats city council approved a $74,000 contract in September with Road & Driveway to do the work. The only other bid the city received came from Knife River at $131,000.
“There is a contingency in there of $15,000 so we will see if they used it,” McClung said.
The delineators are bolted into holders attached to the pavement just inside the highway’s white fog line. When – not if – a vehicle knocks one out they can simply be unbolted and replaced.
Whether the earthen bank that runs along a stretch of the project area will need to be shaved back to ensure the five-foot width required by the Americans with Disabilities Act, will not be known until the inspection after the delineators are set, McClung said.
Two years ago, it was estimated the project would cost $40,000. The city applied for a grant from the Oregon Department of Transportation for that amount and received it. The subsequent increase in cost is attributed to the possible excavation work. ODOT approved permits for the work Aug. 13.
“ODOT will reimburse the city at least $40,000 for the project,” McClung said. “And when it’s done, I will request more and see what they say.”
Comment Policy