PORT ANGELES — The new Eighth Street Bridges aren’t draining correctly, so construction crews this week will “grind” the pavement to fix the problem.

The drainage work will not change the texture of the bridges, and users will probably not notice a difference after the work is finished, city spokeswoman Theresa Pierce said Monday.

The twin bridges spanning two large gorges were opened Feb. 24, reconnecting the city’s east and west sides after a 1½-year series of detours.

The new bridges replaced 70-year-old wood-and-steel trestles that were demolished at the end of 2007.

The Tumwater Creek bridge was closed in August 2007, and the Valley Creek bridge was closed the next month.

On the new concrete spans, crews will primarily be “filing” on the surface to slightly change how the water moves, Pierce said.

“The current drainage system is fine — there are just a few spots that start to puddle up, so they’ll file those so that it more effectively drains,” Pierce said.

Slight slope

Pierce said the bridges are at a slight slope to direct water to either end.

It then goes into a filtration system before it is released.

“This work will just barely change the shape, and it shouldn’t be noticeable at all,” she said.

The work is expected to last a few days — possibly into next week — but traffic won’t be detoured as a result of the work, Pierce said.

The city will not incur any extra costs because the work falls under the warranty made on the bridges by the contractor, Parsons RCI of Sumner, Pierce said.

47 feet wide

The new bridges are 47 feet wide, with two 12-foot vehicle lanes and two 5-foot bicycle lanes.

They cost $24.6 million — $21.6 million in state Department of Transportation grants and $3 million in city funds.

Application of sealer — which protects the concrete from moisture and ensures easier removal of graffiti — still must be done when the weather improves.

Applying the sealer requires a minimum air temperature of 35 degrees, less than 85 percent humidity and a dewpoint of no more than five points more than the minimal air temperature.

Completing the sealer work with good weather will take about 10 days.

One bridge will be closed at a time while that is done, but the exact dates have not been determined.

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Reporter Paige Dickerson can be reached at 360-417-3535 or at paige.dickerson@peninsuladaily news.com.