POULSBO — Despite a wetter than usual winter, the $14.9 million State Route 305 widening project remains on schedule, and soon passersby will notice an escalation in the amount of activity.

“Right now, we’re pretty much on schedule,” said Washington State Department of Transportation construction engineer George Titterness. “Of course, that’s weather dependent.”

So far, the project appears to be going well and the contractor has been right on target with its schedule, said Councilwoman Connie Lord.

“I think they’re doing a great job,” Lord said.

Record rainfalls in December slowed work slightly, but the recent dry spell has helped keep things on track, Titterness said.

“Since November, we’ve put a lot of effort into erosion control, and that’s slowed the type of work we can do,” he said.

The weather hasn’t prevented crews from Signal Electric’s from replacing signal poles at the intersections between Hostmark Street and Bond Road, but it has slowed some of the dirt work, Titterness said.

Crews are also installing drainage pipes along the highway, which is a prelude to the upcoming flurry of activity, he said.

“In the next month, things are really going to kick into high gear,” he said.

Sidewalks and curbs will be installed between Liberty Road and Hostmark Street within the next month or so, but business accesses to SR 305 will remain open, he said.

“We will be working with business owners to keep access to their businesses as normal as possible,” he said.

Traffic shouldn’t be significantly impacted during that work, even though there may be some lane realignments and shifts, Titterness said.

Unlike 2006 when the project began in August, this year, many of the city’s festivals and other summer events will be impacted by the work as two additional lanes are added, Lord said.

“Obviously, it’s going to take longer to get through town, but everyone has to be patient and cooperate,” she said.

Even though the project may create challenges this summer, the end result will be worth it, she said.

“Once it’s done, it’s going to be much easier to get around,” Lord said.

So far, the state hasn’t received many complaints about the project, but it has made at least one adjustment due to concerns raised by the public, Titterness said.

“We restriped the highway, which wasn’t part of the project,” he said

The state realized it was a safety issue, he explained.

As soon as the environmental restrictions are lifted for the season and the fish window reopens in July, crews will be installing culverts on the west side of the Bond Road/SR 305 intersection and the Little Valley Road/State Route 307 intersections.

During the Little Valley Road/SR 307 culvert installation, traffic will be detoured onto Stottlemyer Road, and during the Bond Road/SR 305 installation access to the North Kitsap Medical Center will be limited, Titterness said.