The Agate Pass Bridge will be painted next year, in a project that may last two years, according to the Washington State Department of Transportation.

Steve Roark, assistant region administrator for WSDOT, told the Bainbridge council at its meeting this week that the bridge will be covered during the painting project, with the hope that two lanes of traffic across the span can be maintained during the actual painting process.

The two-lane bridge on Highway 305, built in 1950, has been the subject of repeated cleaning and maintenance work in recent years. It is the island’s only road link to the Kitsap Peninsula, and is used by approximately 22,000 vehicles per day.