Approximately 71,000 drivers who travel daily on Highway 3, between Bremerton and Gorst, can expect a slower commute from late August until early October.

During that time, the Washington State Department of Transportation plans to narrow the highway and lower the speed limit, to facilitate a construction project.

Each lane will shrink from 12 to 10 feet, and the road’s shoulders will be cut, although none of its four lanes will be closed.

The speed limit will decrease from 50 to 35 miles per hour.

Traffic will shift east, toward the water, to make room for a $2.6 million construction project, to the west.

“This is all preventative work,” says Kelly Stowe, a communications consultant with the the department of transportation’s public affairs office. “It’s to prevent the potential for future rock slides.”

Loose basalt will be removed from a nearby cliff, and a protective wire mesh will be installed, to secure the area.