Planning study news
Jacobs Engineering and WSDOT have organized the study into four phases.
Phase 1 – Understanding Needs
Phase 2 – Impacts and Safety
Phase 3 – Solutions and Competitive Impacts
Phase 4 – Draft and Final Report
A task order to conduct Phase 1 has been executed and work is beginning. Most of Phase 1 will take place between April and December of 2024. A task order for Phase 2 will be implemented in the winter of 2025.
Purpose
The Snake River from Clarkston to Pasco contains four dams (Ice Harbor, Lower Monumental, Little Goose and Lower Granite). There has been much interest in removal of these dams for the benefit of salmon, steelhead, Pacific lamprey, bull trout, sturgeon and other native fish species. While there have been several studies that address the topic of removing the dams, there is limited understanding of how transportation would be affected.
As such, the Legislature has directed WSDOT to conduct an analysis of highway, road and freight rail transportation needs, options and impacts of shifting the movement of freight and goods that currently move by barge to truck and rail. This study will fulfill that request by the Legislature.
