Prior to the formal establishment of SR 241 in 1970, the highway between Sunnyside and the Rattlesnake Hills was briefly designated as Secondary State Highway 3V (SSH 3V). SR 241 was moved during the construction of I-82 during the 1980s and was extended south to Mabton in 1991.
SR 241 begins as an extension of Boundary Road at an intersection with SR 22 in Mabton, located at the northeastern edge of the Yakama Indian Reservation.[2] The highway travels northeast towards downtown Mabton, crossing over a section of the BNSF Railway's Yakima Valley subdivision,[3][4] and turns north at Washington Street to follow 1st Avenue on the border between the Yakama Indian Reservation and Mabton. SR 241 leaves Mabton after passing several suburban blocks and crosses over the Yakima River near a boat launch in the Sunnyside State Wildlife Recreation Area.[5][6]
The highway continues north through Givens Corner and across flat farmland predominately used for herb growing and vineyards.[6][7] In the southern outskirts of Sunnyside, SR 241 briefly turns east on Alexander Road and north on Waneta Road to intersect I-82 and US 12 at a diamond interchange. The interchange is also the planned location of a new hospital building for the Astria Health system.[6][8] The highway continues north and crosses over the Central Washington Railroad and the Lower Yakima Valley Pathway trail at an intersection with the Yakima Valley Highway (formerly part of US 12).[5][9][10]
SR 241 travels around the eastern outskirts of Sunnyside, passing several food processing plants and the Sunnyside Municipal Airport, before leaving the city. It continues north into rolling farmland on Hanford Road, turning northeast to follow Sulphur Creek as it ascends into the Rattlesnake Hills. Within the Rattlesnake Hills, the highway leaves the creek and crosses barren rangelands and shrub-steppe highlands.[9] SR 241 turns north and northeasterly to follow a pass in the hills and begins its descent into the pastures of the Black Rock Valley. The highway briefly crosses into Benton County and re-enters Yakima County while turning northwest to avoid a part of the Yakima Ridge. SR 241 terminates at a junction with SR 24, the main east–west route between Yakima and the Hanford area, at the Silver Dollar Cafe.[5][11]
SR 241 is maintained by the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT), which conducts an annual survey of traffic volumes on state highways measured in terms of annual average daily traffic. Traffic volumes on the highway range from a minimum of 1,600 vehicles near its northern terminus in the Rattlesnake Hills to a maximum of 14,000 vehicles at its interchange with I-82.[12]
Historyedit
Looking south on SR 241 from its northern terminus at SR 24
SR 241 follows a section of the 19th-century White Bluffs Road, which connected Sunnyside to the White Bluffs ferry crossing on the Columbia River.[13] A county road connecting Sunnyside to Mabton was constructed by the early 1910s and paved during the following decade.[14][15] The original bridge over the Yakima River was replaced in 1954 by a new span.[16] The state legislature created SR 241 in 1967, assigning it the unsigned designation of Secondary State Highway 3V (SSH 3V). The highway connected US 12 and Sunnyside to SSH 11A in the Rattlesnake Hills.[17][18] The assignment came during the transition between highway numbering systems, which was completed in 1970; SR 241 was officially signed, while SR 24 replaced SSH 11A under the new system.[19][20] Several low-speed curves on sections of the highway were improved to handle higher-speed travel.[21]
The three bridges carrying the highway over the Rosa Irrigation Canal system northeast of Sunnyside were rebuilt by the state government in 1977.[22] SR 241 was extended south to the Waneta Road interchange on I-82 in 1987,[23] five years after the freeway was completed through Sunnyside.[24] The initial selection of Waneta Road instead of the Sunnyside–Mabton Road was controversial with Mabton residents and officials, who sought to change the state government's tentative plans in the 1970s.[25] The state government ultimately chose the Waneta interchange, but promised improvements to nearby roads to appease Mabton.[26] SR 241 was extended further south to a junction with SR 22 in Mabton in 1992, following an act of the state legislature the previous year.[27] The extension had been investigated by a legislative committee in 1986.[28]
The highway is periodically closed during wintertime due to large snow drifts caused by high winds, necessitating the construction of snow fences along sections of SR 241. The fences were, however, damaged in 2016 by wildfires and were not replaced due to funding shortfalls.[29]
^ abMultimodal Planning Division (January 3, 2018). State Highway Log Planning Report 2017, SR 2 to SR 971 (PDF) (Report). Washington State Department of Transportation. pp. 1199–1205. Retrieved August 31, 2018.
^Washington State Department of Transportation (2014). Washington State Highways, 2014–2015(PDF) (Map). Olympia: Washington State Department of Transportation. Retrieved August 31, 2018.
^2015 Washington State Rail System by Owner(PDF) (Map). Washington State Department of Transportation. January 2016. Retrieved August 31, 2018.
^"BNSF Railway Company Class I Railroad Annual Report" (PDF). BNSF Railway. January 2014. p. 32. Retrieved August 31, 2018.
^ abcGoogle (August 31, 2018). "State Route 241" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved August 31, 2018.
^ abc"SR 241: SR 22 Jct (Mabton) to I-82 Jct (Sunnyside)" (PDF). Washington State Department of Transportation. March 29, 2018. Retrieved August 31, 2018.
^Fannin, John (March 20, 2017). "Sunnyside hospital seeks $2 million in state funding". Daily Sun News. Sunnyside, Washington. Retrieved August 31, 2018.
^ ab"SR 241: I-82 Jct (Sunnyside) to SR 24 Jct" (PDF). Washington State Department of Transportation. April 23, 2018. Retrieved August 31, 2018.
^Gargas, Jane (May 20, 2016). "A lovely place for a stroll". Yakima Herald-Republic. Retrieved August 31, 2018.
^Hoang, Mai (July 30, 2010). "Moxee cafe back in business". Tri-City Herald. Retrieved August 31, 2018.
^2016 Annual Traffic Report (PDF) (Report). Washington State Department of Transportation. 2017. p. 167. Retrieved August 31, 2018.
^Draft Tank Closure and Waste Management Environmental Impact Statement for the Hanford Site (Report). United States Department of Energy. October 2009. p. 3-76. Retrieved August 31, 2018 – via Google Books.
^Prosser Quadrangle, Washington (Topographic map). 1:125,000. United States Geological Survey. 1917 [reprinted 1943]. Retrieved August 31, 2018.
^Rand McNally Official 1925 Auto Trails Map of Washington and Oregon (Map). 1:1,077,120. Rand McNally. 1925. Retrieved August 31, 2018 – via David Rumsey Historical Map Collection.
^"1954: Newly constructed Mabton Bridge formally dedicated by mayors". Daily Sun News. Sunnyside, Washington. July 11, 2014. Retrieved August 31, 2018.
^"Chapter 145: Highways" (PDF). Session Laws of the State of Washington, 1967 extraordinary session. Washington State Legislature. May 11, 1967. p. 2311. Retrieved August 31, 2018.
^Walla Walla, 1963(JPG) (Map). 1:250,000. United States Geological Survey. 1963. Retrieved January 21, 2013.
^"Washington State Highway System Legislative Statutes". Washington State Department of Transportation. 1979. p. 39. Retrieved September 26, 2018 – via WSDOT Library Digital Collections.
^Walla Walla Quadrangle (Topographic map). 1:250,000. United States Geological Survey. 1981. Retrieved January 21, 2013 – via Perry–Castañeda Library.
^"Highway 241 improvement urged". Tri-City Herald. August 8, 1973. p. 5.
^"Bridged highway opens". Tri-City Herald. June 1, 1977. p. 5.
^"Chapter 199: State Highway Route Designations Revised" (PDF). Session Laws of the State of Washington, 1987. Washington State Legislature. April 25, 1987. p. 690. Retrieved September 26, 2018.
^"Sunnyside seeks new I-82 signs". Tri-City Herald. November 16, 1982. p. A12.
^"Sunnyside, Mabton disagree during I-82 hearing". Tri-City Herald. July 11, 1974. p. 5.
^"Mabton receives I-82 encouragement". Tri-City Herald. March 18, 1975. p. 3.
^"Chapter 342: State Highway Routes—Revisions to". 1991 Session Laws of the State of Washington, Volume 2(PDF). Washington State Legislature. May 21, 1991. p. 1904. Retrieved September 26, 2018.
^Woehler, Bob (September 19, 1986). "Add roads to highway system, legislators told". Tri-City Herald. pp. A1–A2. Retrieved December 20, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
^Morey, Mark (February 7, 2017). "State considering options to fix State Route 241 snow woes before next winter". Yakima Herald-Republic. Retrieved August 14, 2018.
washington, state, route, state, route, north, south, state, highway, serving, yakima, benton, counties, state, washington, mile, highway, begins, mabton, travels, north, sunnyside, where, intersects, interstate, route, continues, north, into, rattlesnake, hil. State Route 241 SR 241 is a north south state highway serving Yakima and Benton counties in the U S state of Washington The 25 mile 40 km highway begins at SR 22 in Mabton and travels north to Sunnyside where it intersects Interstate 82 I 82 and U S Route 12 US 12 SR 241 continues north into the Rattlesnake Hills and ends at a junction with SR 24 State Route 241Map of eastern Yakima County with SR 241 highlighted in redRoute informationAuxiliary route of SR 24Maintained by WSDOTLength25 18 mi 1 40 52 km Existed1967 presentMajor junctionsSouth endSR 22 in MabtonMajor intersectionsI 82 US 12 in SunnysideNorth endSR 24 near HanfordLocationCountryUnited StatesStateWashingtonCountiesYakima BentonHighway systemState highways in WashingtonInterstate US State Scenic Pre 1964 1964 renumbering Former SR 240 SR 243Prior to the formal establishment of SR 241 in 1970 the highway between Sunnyside and the Rattlesnake Hills was briefly designated as Secondary State Highway 3V SSH 3V SR 241 was moved during the construction of I 82 during the 1980s and was extended south to Mabton in 1991 Contents 1 Route description 2 History 3 Major intersections 4 References 5 External linksRoute description editSR 241 begins as an extension of Boundary Road at an intersection with SR 22 in Mabton located at the northeastern edge of the Yakama Indian Reservation 2 The highway travels northeast towards downtown Mabton crossing over a section of the BNSF Railway s Yakima Valley subdivision 3 4 and turns north at Washington Street to follow 1st Avenue on the border between the Yakama Indian Reservation and Mabton SR 241 leaves Mabton after passing several suburban blocks and crosses over the Yakima River near a boat launch in the Sunnyside State Wildlife Recreation Area 5 6 The highway continues north through Givens Corner and across flat farmland predominately used for herb growing and vineyards 6 7 In the southern outskirts of Sunnyside SR 241 briefly turns east on Alexander Road and north on Waneta Road to intersect I 82 and US 12 at a diamond interchange The interchange is also the planned location of a new hospital building for the Astria Health system 6 8 The highway continues north and crosses over the Central Washington Railroad and the Lower Yakima Valley Pathway trail at an intersection with the Yakima Valley Highway formerly part of US 12 5 9 10 SR 241 travels around the eastern outskirts of Sunnyside passing several food processing plants and the Sunnyside Municipal Airport before leaving the city It continues north into rolling farmland on Hanford Road turning northeast to follow Sulphur Creek as it ascends into the Rattlesnake Hills Within the Rattlesnake Hills the highway leaves the creek and crosses barren rangelands and shrub steppe highlands 9 SR 241 turns north and northeasterly to follow a pass in the hills and begins its descent into the pastures of the Black Rock Valley The highway briefly crosses into Benton County and re enters Yakima County while turning northwest to avoid a part of the Yakima Ridge SR 241 terminates at a junction with SR 24 the main east west route between Yakima and the Hanford area at the Silver Dollar Cafe 5 11 SR 241 is maintained by the Washington State Department of Transportation WSDOT which conducts an annual survey of traffic volumes on state highways measured in terms of annual average daily traffic Traffic volumes on the highway range from a minimum of 1 600 vehicles near its northern terminus in the Rattlesnake Hills to a maximum of 14 000 vehicles at its interchange with I 82 12 History edit nbsp Looking south on SR 241 from its northern terminus at SR 24SR 241 follows a section of the 19th century White Bluffs Road which connected Sunnyside to the White Bluffs ferry crossing on the Columbia River 13 A county road connecting Sunnyside to Mabton was constructed by the early 1910s and paved during the following decade 14 15 The original bridge over the Yakima River was replaced in 1954 by a new span 16 The state legislature created SR 241 in 1967 assigning it the unsigned designation of Secondary State Highway 3V SSH 3V The highway connected US 12 and Sunnyside to SSH 11A in the Rattlesnake Hills 17 18 The assignment came during the transition between highway numbering systems which was completed in 1970 SR 241 was officially signed while SR 24 replaced SSH 11A under the new system 19 20 Several low speed curves on sections of the highway were improved to handle higher speed travel 21 The three bridges carrying the highway over the Rosa Irrigation Canal system northeast of Sunnyside were rebuilt by the state government in 1977 22 SR 241 was extended south to the Waneta Road interchange on I 82 in 1987 23 five years after the freeway was completed through Sunnyside 24 The initial selection of Waneta Road instead of the Sunnyside Mabton Road was controversial with Mabton residents and officials who sought to change the state government s tentative plans in the 1970s 25 The state government ultimately chose the Waneta interchange but promised improvements to nearby roads to appease Mabton 26 SR 241 was extended further south to a junction with SR 22 in Mabton in 1992 following an act of the state legislature the previous year 27 The extension had been investigated by a legislative committee in 1986 28 The highway is periodically closed during wintertime due to large snow drifts caused by high winds necessitating the construction of snow fences along sections of SR 241 The fences were however damaged in 2016 by wildfires and were not replaced due to funding shortfalls 29 Major intersections editCountyLocationmi 1 kmDestinationsNotesYakimaMabton0 000 00 nbsp SR 22 Toppenish ProsserSouthern terminusSunnyside7 5412 13 nbsp nbsp I 82 US 12 Yakima ProsserBenton No major junctionsYakima 25 1840 52 nbsp SR 24 Yakima VernitaNorthern terminus1 000 mi 1 609 km 1 000 km 0 621 miReferences edit a b Multimodal Planning Division January 3 2018 State Highway Log Planning Report 2017 SR 2 to SR 971 PDF Report Washington State Department of Transportation pp 1199 1205 Retrieved August 31 2018 Washington State Department of Transportation 2014 Washington State Highways 2014 2015 PDF Map Olympia Washington State Department of Transportation Retrieved August 31 2018 2015 Washington State Rail System by Owner PDF Map Washington State Department of Transportation January 2016 Retrieved August 31 2018 BNSF Railway Company Class I Railroad Annual Report PDF BNSF Railway January 2014 p 32 Retrieved August 31 2018 a b c Google August 31 2018 State Route 241 Map Google Maps Google Retrieved August 31 2018 a b c SR 241 SR 22 Jct Mabton to I 82 Jct Sunnyside PDF Washington State Department of Transportation March 29 2018 Retrieved August 31 2018 WSDA Agricultural Land Use Map Cartography by Esri Washington State Department of Agriculture Retrieved August 31 2018 Fannin John March 20 2017 Sunnyside hospital seeks 2 million in state funding Daily Sun News Sunnyside Washington Retrieved August 31 2018 a b SR 241 I 82 Jct Sunnyside to SR 24 Jct PDF Washington State Department of Transportation April 23 2018 Retrieved August 31 2018 Gargas Jane May 20 2016 A lovely place for a stroll Yakima Herald Republic Retrieved August 31 2018 Hoang Mai July 30 2010 Moxee cafe back in business Tri City Herald Retrieved August 31 2018 2016 Annual Traffic Report PDF Report Washington State Department of Transportation 2017 p 167 Retrieved August 31 2018 Draft Tank Closure and Waste Management Environmental Impact Statement for the Hanford Site Report United States Department of Energy October 2009 p 3 76 Retrieved August 31 2018 via Google Books Prosser Quadrangle Washington Topographic map 1 125 000 United States Geological Survey 1917 reprinted 1943 Retrieved August 31 2018 Rand McNally Official 1925 Auto Trails Map of Washington and Oregon Map 1 1 077 120 Rand McNally 1925 Retrieved August 31 2018 via David Rumsey Historical Map Collection 1954 Newly constructed Mabton Bridge formally dedicated by mayors Daily Sun News Sunnyside Washington July 11 2014 Retrieved August 31 2018 Chapter 145 Highways PDF Session Laws of the State of Washington 1967 extraordinary session Washington State Legislature May 11 1967 p 2311 Retrieved August 31 2018 Walla Walla 1963 JPG Map 1 250 000 United States Geological Survey 1963 Retrieved January 21 2013 Washington State Highway System Legislative Statutes Washington State Department of Transportation 1979 p 39 Retrieved September 26 2018 via WSDOT Library Digital Collections Walla Walla Quadrangle Topographic map 1 250 000 United States Geological Survey 1981 Retrieved January 21 2013 via Perry Castaneda Library Highway 241 improvement urged Tri City Herald August 8 1973 p 5 Bridged highway opens Tri City Herald June 1 1977 p 5 Chapter 199 State Highway Route Designations Revised PDF Session Laws of the State of Washington 1987 Washington State Legislature April 25 1987 p 690 Retrieved September 26 2018 Sunnyside seeks new I 82 signs Tri City Herald November 16 1982 p A12 Sunnyside Mabton disagree during I 82 hearing Tri City Herald July 11 1974 p 5 Mabton receives I 82 encouragement Tri City Herald March 18 1975 p 3 Chapter 342 State Highway Routes Revisions to 1991 Session Laws of the State of Washington Volume 2 PDF Washington State Legislature May 21 1991 p 1904 Retrieved September 26 2018 Woehler Bob September 19 1986 Add roads to highway system legislators told Tri City Herald pp A1 A2 Retrieved December 20 2023 via Newspapers com Morey Mark February 7 2017 State considering options to fix State Route 241 snow woes before next winter Yakima Herald Republic Retrieved August 14 2018 External links editKML file edit help Template Attached KML Washington State Route 241KML is from Wikidata Highways of Washington State Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Washington State Route 241 amp oldid 1208713054, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
