Safety improvements include slower speeds and removal of passing zones

CLARK COUNTY – Beginning Tuesday (July 5), travelers should expect delays during paving work on a nearly 10-mile stretch of Fourth Plain Boulevard, also called State Route 500, between Northeast 162nd Avenue and Northeast Leadbetter Road near Camas.

In addition to a safer, smoother roadway to preserve SR 500, speed limits are being reduced to slow traffic down in the corridor and passing zones are being eliminated to improve safety for people traveling on the highway.

Contractor crews working for the Washington State Department of Transportation will pave both directions during a two-month period. Beginning July 5, people traveling on this portion of SR 500 should plan for:

• Delays up to 20 minutes.
• Daytime and nighttime closures.
• Travel limited to a single lane.
• A pilot car to escort travelers through the work zone.
• Residents whose driveways connect to this section of Fourth Plain Boulevard should be prepared to wait for a pilot car to navigate them through the work zone.

Speed reduction and passing zones

Beginning June 28, new permanent regulatory speed limit signing has reduced the speed limit to:

• 40 mph between Northeast 162nd and Northeast 166th avenues in Vancouver.
• 45 mph between Northeast 166th Avenue and Robinson Road near Camas.
• 35 mph between Robinson Road and near Southeast Fifth Street in Camas. 

When the paving project finishes in August, all existing passing zones will be closed from Northeast 166th Avenue to Northeast Hathaway Road, removing all passing opportunities on the corridor. 

Information provided by Washington State Department of Transportation.