BEND, OR -- The Murphy Road project on the south end of Bend is about halfway done. The $27 million project is designed to make travel from the west side of Bend to the east side easier, and improve access to Third Street.
Two bridges over South Third Street are finished. The next phase has Brookswood blocked to through traffic as crews construct a new roundabout. Peter Murphy, with the Oregon Department of Transportation, tells KBND, “Our game plan is to have it finished before Labor Day, or before the day after Labor Day when kids go back to school. In fact I think we’re a little bit ahead of that schedule. So we’re doing what we can to get into the roundabout, get it done and get out. And after that we’ll start finishing up the actual Murphy Road connection back to the bridge.”
And, there is good news for those struggling with area detours. “It looks like we’re a little ahead of schedule right now in terms of just the roundabout at Brookswood. We’re encouraging the contractor to do what he can. We’re doing what we can because we want to make sure it gets open, certainly before school starts. I mean, that’s almost a hard and fast deadline,” Murphy says.
When the entire Murphy Road project is finished in October, there will be a new look to the east-west connection to third street in Bend.
For updates on the project, visit ODOT's website, or YouTube channel.
