By LUISA LOI

Special to the News-Times

State legislators recently approved the 2025-27 transportation budget that includes funds to start tackling the issue of suicides at Deception Pass Bridge.

According to Sen. Ron Muzzall, who voted in support of the over $15 billion budget and lobbied the Senate Transportation Committee to support suicide prevention efforts at the bridge, said the state budget allocates about $900,000 for the study and engineering of solutions that would “make it more difficult to commit suicide off Deception Pass.”

The final transportation budget, Senate Bill 5161, passed with bipartisan majorities in both chambers and is headed to the governor’s desk as of Tuesday morning.

Muzzall, a Republican from Oak Harbor, also voted for Senate Bill 5801, a supplemental revenue package that is expected to generate $3.2 billion in the span of six years through various revenue sources, including a phased 6-cent gas tax increase, a redirection of a portion of existing state sales tax toward transportation projects, new diesel taxes, new luxury taxes on high-end vehicles and aircraft, an increase in the motor vehicle sales tax and higher weight-based vehicle fees starting in 2026, according to a press release from Muzzall’s office.

Though he worries about burdening constituents, Muzzall stated in the press release that the improvements made to the original proposal — including reducing the 8-cent gas tax increase to 6 cents — and the urgency of putting suicide-prevention measures in place justified his support.

Deception Pass Bridge is managed by the Washington State Department of Transportation. Evan Grimm, state bridge engineer for WSDOT, pointed out the bridge was built in 1934-1935 to support loading scenarios from that time period and nowadays requires large trucks to submit a permit application to cross it. Over the years, the structure has gone through repairs to keep it as strong as it originally was, he said, and any additions could increase that load.

WSDOT, he said, could put up a fence similar to what it installed on the Aurora Bridge in Seattle, but before that, engineers will have to conduct a structural analysis of what a fence could look like on the bridge and its potential impacts on the structure. A tall fence, for example, could catch more wind and add more pressure, he said.

Northwest Region Environmental Program Manager Eliza McGovern added that WSDOT would have to ensure the project is complying with a variety of state and federal laws associated with preservation and recreational resources, reaching out to the various groups that would be affected and looking at minimizing any adverse effects.

Whether it’s a fence or another deterrent, Grimm believes the chances of finding something that will work are good, as long as it’s affordable. Currently, the cost of construction and the timeline of this work are unknown.

When a report of someone jumping off the bridge is received, the response can involve a multitude of local agencies, including the Island and Skagit sheriff departments, North Whidbey Fire and Rescue, Mount Erie Fire Department, State Parks, the Coast Guard and the Navy.

According to information provided by Detective Ed Wallace, who works for the Island County Sheriff’s Office, the department has responded to about 109 calls relating to suicides, suicide threats and potential mental health crises reported by concerned loved ones since Jan. 1.

Among these, about 16 calls led deputies to Deception Pass Bridge, he said, adding that the number of calls to the bridge reached 36 in 2024.

North Whidbey Fire and Rescue Chris Swiger estimated his department responds to these situations “at least once a month.”

The frequent suicides and mental health crises taking place at the historic landmark have inspired many in the community to call for solutions to prevent people from taking their own lives there. About seven years ago, Whidbey resident Yvette Fletcher worked to get a red emergency phone installed at the bridge, which is known for spotty cell phone coverage.

Muzzall lost a few loved ones to suicide, including a friend who jumped off the bridge last summer. After responding to other suicides in his 20 years of serving North Whidbey Fire and Rescue, the issue has weighed heavily on his mind for some time and he worries for the mental wellbeing of other first responders.

Wallace, who has been doing his job for 35 years, said first responders tend to go immediately into “work mode,” processing what happened only when things start to slow down. While everyone deals with it in their own way, he said, they feel the impact.

“It’s upsetting to have to deal with these,” he said, speaking from experience. “Like anybody else who deals with trauma, it’s almost a clinical exercise anymore. But I can’t say that it doesn’t affect me.”

In December, ahead of the legislative session, Muzzall met with WSDOT, the sheriff departments from Island and Skagit, State Patrol, State Parks, and the Mount Eerie and North Whidbey fire departments in hopes of getting everyone on board with finding and supporting a solution.

While a barrier may not always stop people from finding a way to end their lives, Wallace and Swiger said, it could also give them some extra time to reconsider and change their minds.

“We reached a point in time where we just got too many lives lost and too many lives affected by the continuing suicide rate on Deception Pass Bridge,” Muzzall said.