Construction on the largest public works project in Ferndale since 2004 — the Thornton Street overpass — is scheduled to begin in April, city officials announced.
City spokesman Riley Sweeney said the $23 million project, scheduled to be finished by the summer of 2023, could resolve congestion in downtown Ferndale where 80% of motorists pass when heading to Interstate 5.
The new bridge, which goes over the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway right of way and tracks, will provide access between Malloy Avenue and the Portal Way roundabout. City officials say they expect it to become a principal route for the majority of Ferndale residents living on the west side of town.
The project is mostly funded through a $19.1 million grant awarded in 2016 by the Connecting Washington Program. The city also received $2.5 million in 2018 from the transportation department’s Urban Arterial Program, which is funded by the state’s motor vehicle tax.
The bridge is the final phase of a project that began in April 2020. The last major project was the improvement of the Main Street Bridge over the Nooksack River, Sweeney said.
