U.S. Hwy 2 / Tumwater Canyon To Close For Maintenance

A fifteen-mile stretch of U.S. Highway 2 (U.S. 2) near Leavenworth will be closed next Wednesday (Sept. 25).

The Washington State Department of Transportation (DOT) is shutting down the roadway through Tumwater Canyon so it can perform pre-winter maintenance.

DOT spokesperson, Lauren Loebsack, says closing the entire canyon helps speed up the work.

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"We find that when we can have that full-day closure, it helps us expedite the work. That's because we can bring all of the specialists who do specific components of the work and their equipment all in on the same day. So it's been a really effective way to get the ball rolling on pre-winter work."

The pre-winter maintenance will include felling hazardous trees, filling pot holes and other road repairs, and fixing damaged guardrails and drainage.

During the closure, traffic on U.S. 2 will be detoured around the work zone on State Route 207 and the Chumstick Highway.

Loebsack says the alternate route does not apply to large trucks and oversized loads.

"Remember, the detour route is not appropriate for feight traffic. So for large and oversized loads that need access east of Leavenworth on U.S. 2, they'll need to take U.S. (Highway) 97 over Blewett Pass from I-90 over Snoqualmie and then approach westbound from the Big Y."

The work will occur from milepost 84 to milepost 89 from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. and is only scheduled to occur on Wednesday.