How to avoid hazards, safely boat through the bridge work zone

From ODOT-

I hope you are looking forward to summer as much as I am!

Many of you may be enjoying it on the water.  Here is some advice for safely boating or floating down the river and through the construction zone of the I-5 Willamette River Bridge project.

It might look like you can pass under the work bridge in any location. However, the combination of strong currents, pilings in the river and trapped or floating debris in the work zone creates tricky hazards.

If you enter the river upstream, east of the bridge, please keep to the right bank along the north side of the river to pass through the work zone at the designated safe place. Our crews maintain this channel to keep it clear of debris and snags for safe passage under the bridge. 

                                                                             

Look for signs on the work bridge and along the right bank channel to direct you. Boaters will also find informational signs at put-in areas upstream of the bridge.

A sign in the Willamette River (far left) directs a boater to the safe channel

A sign at the D Street boat ramp cautions boaters that they are entering a construction zone

And please, always wear a life jacket regardless of how experienced a boater or how strong a swimmer you are. River currents can be unpredictably strong and spring snowmelt makes for shockingly cold water, even on hot days.

We are committed to keeping river users safe in our project area, and with your help we can have another incident-free boating season.