Rainbow Bridge gets a checkup

La Conner’s iconic Rainbow Bridge underwent a thorough examination, and since the bridge docs didn’t notify the county of any serious problems, it looks like the ageing structure will get another clean bill of health.

Skagit County’s Transportation Program Section Manager Forrest Jones, who is also the lead bridge inspector for the county, said he expects detailed inspection results in the next week or so.

Traffic backed up for a few hours on Wednesday on the county-owned bridge across the Swinomish Channel as flaggers funneled traffic into one lane, while a contraption called a UBIT made its slow way from one side to the other.

Jones said UBIT is an acronym for the under bridge inspection truck. A long arm on the truck carried a human under and over the bridge for a close-up look at every inch.

The county doesn’t own a UBIT, so it contracts with the state Department of Transportation to bring theirs up here for Rainbow Bridge inspections, which costs the county around $10,000.

Last week’s exam was routine, Jones said. “By federal law, you’re required to inspect your bridges every 24 months.”

It’s actually been only 22 months since the bridge was last examined, however. In July 2014 a boater heard a loud boom and saw a chunk of something fall from the bottom of the bridge.

That event triggered an immediate “extra” inspection, which determined that the bridge was OK.

Rainbow Bridge was built in 1957 to replace an old 1917 swing bridge that ran across to the Swinomish side of the channel as an extension of Morris Street.

At the time it was built, Rainbow Bridge was given a life expectancy of 75 years. But that doesn’t mean the bridge will collapse in another 15 years. “When you take care of it, it’s going to last much longer,” Jones said. “Most bridges have a 50- to 75-year lifespan. We have bridges in the eastern part of the county more than 80 years old.”

And even though the brilliant orange paint looks faded, the bridge is in much better shape than some of the others around the county, Jones said.

So what about the faded paint? “I think it needs more of a wash than it needs painting,” Jones said.

Rainbow Bridge holds 72,000 square feet of paint, Jones said. Since bridges are exposed to the elements, the paint condition is rated from 1 to 4. A rating of 1 is for paint in good condition and the bridge had 71,300 square feet rated 1 at its last inspection. There were 400 square feet in condition 2, which is repaired paint; and 300 square feet in condition 3, which means paint is flaking off. There was no condition 4 — spots with no paint — on Rainbow Bridge.

Jones said when a bridge reaches a condition where 15 to 20 percent of the paint is in condition 2 or worse, a paint job would likely be approved by the state’s Bridge Replacement Advisory Committee, which decides where federal bridge repair dollars go.

Two years ago, less than 1 percent of the bridge’s paint was considered less than perfect, leaving a federally funded paint job a distant dream for now.

Even though paint doesn’t have to be pretty to be functional, Skagit County Commissioner Ron Wesen said he realizes that Rainbow Bridge is part of La Conner’s identity. Nationally, he said, “We have to start spending more money to maintain them.” But for the county right now, “the funding isn’t there to upgrade them.”

La Conner Mayor Ramon Hayes said that next year will be the 60th anniversary of the Rainbow Bridge. For the past several years, he’s been trying to find town funding to put permanent lights on it.

In the past a local resident, Don Scott, used to climb up there and string what looked like Christmas lights across it, creating a beautiful nighttime silhouette. Those lights have been dark for years but still burn in people’s memories.

He said Council Member Bill Bruch has been contacting lighting contractors to get estimates on what it would cost to install permanent lighting on the bridge.

Meanwhile, Hayes said he has a question or the bridge’s owner: for next year’s 60th Rainbow Bridge Anniversary celebration, “Would the county like an unpainted and unlighted bridge, or a painted and lighted bridge?”

Like the boardwalk, Hayes, said he views La Conner’s scenic Rainbow Bridge as an economic driver for the town. Tourists come to town to photograph it, and artists come here to paint it.