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New Scorpion Creek Bridge completed, awaiting water

The Scorpion Creek Bridge on Idaho 78 has been substantially completed, with crews needing to return in October to plant Bluegrass (Barley and Sandberg) and Needle-and-Thread Buffalo Grass. 

The new concrete slab bridge replaces three corrugated-metal culverts that ran under the roadway at milepost 23. One culvert was completely plugged. The other two culverts were more than halfway filled with sediment from the creek. 

The new bridge addresses a safety concern with water spilling over the roadway every time Scorpion Creek floods, which is nearly an annual event. The new bridge, about six miles northwest of Murphy, will accommodate higher water levels. The roadway elevation also was raised about two feet. The roadway approaches were reconstructed to match the new height and the wider bridge.

Knife River Corp. Northwest, of Boise, is the contractor on this $947,000 project.

Published 9-27-13