A long section of the 19-mile Green River Trail south of I-405 in King County will remain closed to bicycling as flood protection remains in place for the time-being.
Workers installed the 3- to 4-foot high wall of sandbags along the levee-top trail that runs through towns south of Seattle in the fall of 2009.
That's when the Army Corps of Engineers reported the Howard Hanson Dam upstream could no longer handle high water, and they'd have to flood the Green River Valley in the event of heavy rains.
Dam problem fixed
Two weeks ago, however, the Corps announced that repairs have been made and they could operate the dam at full capacity this fall and winter.
It looks like the sandbags are going to remain in place for another rainy season, however.
A spokeswoman for the King County parks department told me:
“There are several major players and factors involved, and all will have to act in order to restore the trail.”
The department will announce any target dates for a trail reopening at the Green River Trail website.
The Kent Reporter says the cities of Kent, Tukwila and Auburn all plan to keep sandbags in place for another rainy season to enable the Corps to evaluate its repairs to the dam.
The sandbags cover more than half the trail, requiring it be closed to bicyclists. Pedestrian can still use most of it, however.
Detour
The Interurban Trail is the main north-south alternative for bicyclists riding between the towns of Tukwila and Pacific. East-west bicycle
access is provided by S. 200th/196th, S. 212th Street, James, and
Meeker streets, according to the website.
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[…] were shunted off to the Interurban Trail that runs between the town of Pacific and Seattle. As the Army Corps of Engineers has repaired its dam last fall, those sandbags are no longer […]