NE 42nd Avenue Bridge to close 2 years for major construction

The Portland Bureau of Transportation plans to make the bridge more earth-quake ready — and upgrade its pedestrian and bike options in the process – but the construction will close off the bridge for at least two years.

The new bridge will connect the NE Holman Neighborhood Greenway and the NE 47th Avenue multi-use path. 

PBOT said the project is set to begin Aug. 4, 2025.

“The traveling public is advised to use alternative routes, expect delays, travel cautiously, and observe all closures and directions by flaggers,” officials said. “Local access to residences and businesses near the bridge ramps will remain available.”

Alternative routes for general traffic include NE 33rd Avenue, 60th Avenue and Cully Blvd., but these routes cannot handle freight passage.

Northbound trucks can go east on Killingsworth Street to 82nd Avenue, north to reach Columbia Blvd., and southbound freight traffic can go east on Columbia Blvd to Cully Blvd, then south to Killingsworth Street.