A Jefferson County commissioner thinks county officials should try for mitigation money to pay for repair and/or reconstruction of Center Road following the 2007 closure of the Hood Canal Bridge.

“I’m certain (trucks) will go that way,” said Pat Rodgers, R-Brinnon, during Monday’s commissioner meeting.

The floating bridge, connecting Jefferson and Kitsap counties, will be closed for about eight weeks in May-June 2007, forcing all traffic between the North Olympic Peninsula and Puget Sound basin to travel U.S. Highway 101 along Hood Canal.

The closure will allow for replacement of the aged eastern half of the bridge.

Rodgers said he doesn’t think truckers going to and from East Jefferson County will be interested in using Highway 101 and state Highway 20 as they make the trip.

Center Road starts in Chimacum and connects to Highway 101 at Quilcene.

“It’s the best road in the county,” Rodgers said.

Rodgers said truckers won’t want to drive through the twists of Highways 101 and 20 or deal with the hill at Eaglemont.

Commissioner Glen Huntingford, R-Chimacum, recalled what happened when the west half of the bridge sank in a windstorm on Feb. 13, 1979.

“It was crazy,” said Huntingford, who was driving log truck between Jefferson County and Hoquiam at the time.

“There were only 5,000 (bridge) trips a day then, and they’re estimating 24,000 trips when they do the closure,” Huntingford said.

“I can’t imagine what it’s going to be like.”