The city of Spokane Valley plans soon to begin work on temporary structural improvements to the southbound Sullivan Road bridge crossing the Spokane River that will enable city engineers to remove current weight restrictions on the bridge when completed.

Weight limits on the southbound Sullivan bridge were put in place last June by the city's public works department to help preserve the structure's integrity until improvements could be made.

The city will spend about $156,000 of its own money on the temporary improvements, which are scheduled to be completed by the end of February.

The city is contracting with Spokane Valley-based N.A. Degerstrom Inc. to handle the bridge repairs, says Pete Fisch, city public works project manager.

Long-term plans call for the bridge to be replaced, and design work for a new structure already is under way. The estimated total cost for that project is just under $20 million, of which about half has been secured so far from state and federal funding sources.

The construction schedule for the planned new southbound bridge is contingent upon when the remaining needed funding is secured, Fisch says.

The current weight restrictions on the bridge are forcing several industrial and manufacturing facilities at the nearby Spokane Business & Industrial Park and other facilities to reroute some trucks to other roads in order to access Interstate 90, or to carry loads at less than a truck's maximum weight capacity.

Weight limits for the bridge vary depending on the maximum capacity of a truck, and the city has listed those restrictions on its website.

During the upcoming repairs, southbound traffic is to be shifted to the northbound bridge, which will be reduced to one lane of traffic in each direction. During that time, normal weight limits will apply to traffic crossing the bridge, the city says.