by Jerry Cornfield, Washington State Standard
October 16, 2025
Two months after its severing, a vital transportation link for small cities in two of Washington’s largest counties will reopen Friday.
The White River Bridge connecting eastern King and Pierce counties has been closed since mid-August when it was struck by an overheight truck and significantly damaged. It will open for traffic between 5 p.m. and midnight on Friday, Gov. Bob Ferguson announced Thursday.
“We’re hoping it’s on the earlier side of 5 p.m., but it’ll be in that window. We’re extremely excited about that,” Ferguson said at a news conference at the bridge.
“We understood how challenging the situation was for the community,” he said. “A lot of things could have gone in a different direction, but through a lot of hard work and a little bit of luck, we’re super excited to be opening up this early, literally weeks early.”
Repair costs will be more than double what was initially expected, checking in north of $4 million.
Enumclaw Mayor Jan Molinaro, Buckley Mayor Beau Burkett, and King County Councilmember Reagan Dunn were among a throng of local officials, business owners, and workers who joined Ferguson for the announcement.
The steel truss bridge, built in 1949, is on State Route 410 and is a lifeline for the cities of Enumclaw and Buckley. Before the crash, it carried more than 22,000 vehicles per day, according to the state Department of Transportation.
The closure disrupted daily life of residents and the economies of the two cities.
“Economically, we’ve been hurting,” Molinaro said. ”We really want to get life back to a normal situation, and this allows us to do that.”
State transportation officials ordered the bridge closed Aug. 18, citing the severity of damage.
Nine days later, Ferguson declared a state of emergency in the two counties, enabling the state to pursue federal funds for reimbursement of repairs. The emergency proclamation estimated repairs could exceed $2 million.
State transportation officials on Thursday estimated repairs will cost $4.5 million, adding that a final amount will be known when work is completed and all expenses associated with this undertaking are tallied.
There’s no guarantee the state will recoup its expenses. The Federal Emergency Management Agency this year has twice rejected the state’s request for federal help to cover tens of millions of dollars in damage caused by a bomb cyclone late last year.
The disaster declaration could help provide funding to businesses hurt by the closure. King County is looking at a loan program run by the U.S. Small Business Administration to potentially help local establishments. Some businesses have applied, according to speakers at Thursday’s event.
The incident is spurring the Washington State Department of Transportation to put in additional signs on both sides of the span warning of the bridge height. Also, the state is looking to install an advanced warning system, such as a flashing sign or road bumps, for the bridge, WSDOT Secretary Julie Meredith said.
Ferguson said his proposed 2026 supplemental budget will seek more dollars for maintenance and preservation of Washington’s highways and bridges. He will release his proposal in December.
State transportation officials warned again this week that underfunding has put the state’s transportation system in the “early stages of critical failure.”
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