Above is a conceptual design for the new Spokane Transit Authority's station at Four Lakes. The final design will likely vary somewhat from this conceptual design.
SPOKANE - Travel between Cheney and all points north on State Route 904 is going to become much more congested over the next 4-5 months as construction of Spokane Transit Authority's Four Lakes station begins.
The station is part of the $5.23 million Cheney Line, which itself is a component of STA's overall 10-year "Moving Forward" project to improve mass transit in the region. The Cheney Line is designed to bring "high-performance" transit capabilities to the region, providing better interconnectivity between cities on the West Plains as well as Spokane.
"So that overall corridor is part of our improvements to provide frequent, easy to use and reliable transit on the West Plains," STA Project Director Carl Otterstrom said at a virtual open house on the project March 30. "This is a big change to the highway."
General contractor H.M. Winkler was the low bidder on the Four Lakes station portion of the line at $800,000, and is slated to begin work on April 19. Once completed, the station will move the two existing bus stops closer together, provide improved bus pullouts, a platform for riders with sidewalks and curbing along with rider amenities such as a shelter, trash and recycle bins, real-time rider information screen and improved lighting.
Project manager Nick Hanson said work will begin on the east side of SR 904, with the contractor setting up traffic control, clearing the area, installation of water structures, trenching, installation of electric conduits, foundation work for future amenities, pouring of concrete for curbing and sidewalks and lastly signage and stripping.
Once the east side work is completed in late May, the same construction will move to the west side of SR 904, with completion of that phase expected in early July. The contractor will then install a center concrete median in the highway, designed to provide a safe, halfway point for riders crossing the highway.
Otterstrom added that the median doesn't remove the need to look both ways before crossing the highway or conceding the right of way to traffic, but will instead provide some "additional confidence" for safety.
During the work, north and south bound traffic will be rerouted to the current two-way turn lane. The access to 1st Avenue off SR 904 will be closed, and Spokane Street will be closed to traffic between 1st and 2nd avenues.
Upon completion, Spokane Street will remain closed to through traffic between 1st and 2nd, with only local access allowed. Vehicles heading to Cheney will be able to turn left or right onto 1st Avenue, but will not be able to turn left onto 1st coming from Cheney. Hanson said there will also be a slight realignment of the highway as the bus pullouts will shorten the right turn onto the Medical Lake-Four Lakes road for vehicles coming from the north.
Work on the first portion of the Four Lakes station is expected to be completed by July 20.
"At the completion of our work in July, the sidewalk, the median, crosswalk with no amenities installed until sometime in late 2022," Hanson added.
STA officials say the key purposes of the project are to improve safety, enhance passenger comfort, improve community connectivity, support current and future service and improve traffic flow. Project planning began in 2014, with federal funding obtained in 2016, and community outreach to local homeowners and community members taking place in 2020.
Weekday ridership data for 2019 from STA indicates nine individuals getting on and five getting off at Four Lakes coming from Cheney, while seven people get on and 22 get off coming from Spokane and other points to the north. Otterstrom said surveys indicated more people might ride the bus if safety improvements were made.
John McCallum can be reached at [email protected].
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