The Reed Market Railroad Bridge is In View

The City of Bend has revealed the proposed bridge design for the Reed Market railroad overpass. The bridge will stretch from American Lane east to just past SE Quill Place. Access at American Lane will continue to exist when the bridge opens, but access to SE Ninth Street will be modified. The intersection will be raised and connected to the bridge. Eastbound drivers will still be able to turn left onto Ninth, but drivers exiting Ninth will only be allowed to turn right onto Reed Market.

There will still be two eastbound lanes on Reed Market and one westbound lane, but the bridge itself will have two lanes in each direction along with buffered bike lanes and sidewalks on each side. A pedestrian tunnel will be built west of Ninth Street for people to cross Reed Market north-south and hook up with a trail that currently exists on the south side.

A pedestrian tunnel (indicated on the map in blue) will be built under Reed Market near SE 9th Street. Credit: City of Bend

A report developed by engineering consultant DOWL, LLC outlines four alternatives the City considered, including a shorter 86-foot span, a medium 142-foot span, a longer span and an undercrossing. The plan that advanced is 108 feet, which can accommodate an additional rail line that BNSF Railway may add in the future. The underpass concept was dismissed due to drainage issues and cost.

Reed Market is the only road south of Greenwood Avenue to connect 27^th Street on the east side of Bend to the west side of the river. The City says six to eight trains cross Reed Market daily and can stop traffic for more than 20 minutes at a time. City staff received a lot of feedback from the community prior to selecting a bridge design, including concerns about intersection safety at SE 9^th Street, American Lane and Quill Place. More than half of the people who responded to a survey said they want shared paths for walking and biking on both sides of the bridge.

The railroad overpass will have four lanes of traffic plus bike lanes and sidewalks on both sides. Credit: City of Bend

Three businesses on Reed Market will be heavily impacted by the railroad bridge. Mars of Bend, which restores cars, will lose its Reed Market driveway, but the City plans to use the old American Lane bridge crossing the canal to create new access to Mars and the self-storage unit the business also owns. Across the street, Legacy Motorsportz Automotive Repair and Northwest Staple Supply Bend will be forced to relocate.

Two of Legacy’s owners told the Source that the building is being demolished so the City can relocate utilities that are currently underneath Reed Market.

“We’re going to move on down to American Lane where they’re building some new buildings,” co-owner Chris Parco says.

Jesse Hedrick of Northwest Staple Supply owns the building and says he’s uncertain about his next steps.

Owners of Northwest Staple Supply and Legacy Motorsportz say the City of Bend plans to demolish their building for the new railroad overpass. Credit: Nic Moye

“We don’t know what the payout will be to move and buy another building. Buildings in Bend are very expensive. We don’t know. I have no idea,” he says about his future.

“We are still exploring access options for all impacted properties and it is too early to have details on timeline or cost,” City Engineer Ryan Oster told the Source. There are specific steps the City is required to take before it can assemble an exact timeline.

“Due to the use of federal funds, the right-of-way acquisition process cannot start until after the National Environmental Policy Act [review] is completed and approved,” Oster explains. The environmental law was enacted in 1970, requiring federal agencies to consider the environmental impact of proposed actions before making decisions.

Funding for the design and construction of the project is a mix of an expected $32 million grant from the Federal Rail Administration and the City matching 30% of that amount. An agreement for the federal funds is expected to be signed in the first half of 2026.

“If the grant does not come through, as this is a priority project for the City, we would prioritize local funds to finish the project,” Oster says. “The City has dedicated funds from the current 2020 Transportation GO Bond budget to build the Reed Market Bridge if the funding from the Federal Rail Administration does not come through. Either way, we will stay on schedule for designing and building the bridge.”

Hedrick, at Northwest Staple Supply, says he’ll feel better once a timeline is figured out and he knows he needs to be prepared to move by a specific date. The City says BNSF Railway has provided preliminary approval for the concept design.

Before construction can begin, two roundabouts on SE 15^th Street, which is expected to be a detour route, need to be completed. The roundabout at Reed Market and 15^th will be widened to ensure there are two full lanes entering and exiting from each side. A new roundabout will be built at 15^th and Ferguson Road. Construction on the railroad bridge is expected to begin in mid-2027 with completion in 2029.