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The State Route 14 Bingen and Port of Klickitat Access Improvement Project is designed to make travel safer and faster and to aid development of the small town of Bingen.
A Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) project in the works with the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway (BNSF) for 11 years is on track to be completed late this year. The State Route 14 Bingen and Port of Klickitat Access Improvement Project is designed to make travel safer and faster and to aid development of the small town of Bingen set in the heart of the Columbia River Gorge, WSDOT spokeswoman Sarah Hannon-Nein told Construction Equipment Guide. “To reach Bingen Point and the Port of Klickitat, drivers must cross railroad tracks that run along the south side of State Route 14,” Hannon-Nein said. “When trains pass through, or stop on the tracks, traffic backs up, causing long
By Lori Tobias
CEG CORRESPONDENT
delays. For some, these delays can be frustrating. In an emergency, they can be critical. “The city of Bingen has grown quickly in recent years. As the town has grown, traffic on SR 14 has also increased. That makes this project even more important. It addresses today’s traffic concerns and prepares the community for future growth.” The $34.25 million project involves a new railroad bridge, a new street and a new roundabout. Talks about the project with the state, city of Bingen and BNSF began in 2015, followed by engineering plans and right-of-way acquisition. “Before construction began, project designers studied the area near the train tracks,” Hannon-Nein said. “Their goal was to improve travel, reduce congestion and delays
and increase safety. They decided that building a new road next to the underpass would give the community more direct access to the port.” BNSF built the new rail bridge in 2025. In September 2025, Kerr Contractors of Oregon began work on the new road, which will pass under the railroad separating the Port of Klickitat and SR 14. The primary challenge is managing traffic, Hannon-Nein said. “Certain parts of this work do require us to close a lane of the SR 14 corridor during work hours,” she said. About 181 miles long, SR 14 is Washington’s east-west connection spanning Vancouver, Wash., to the Tri-Cities area. see KLICKITAT page 8