State Route 285

As first posted in 1977, SR 285 only included the 1950 vintage bridge across the Columbia River between Wenatchee and East Wenatchee plus the connections between the east end of the bridge and SR 28. The bridge had originally been signed as part of US 2. When a new bridge across the Columbia near Olds Station on the north side of the Wenatchee-East Wenatchee area was completed in 1975, US 2 was switched to the new bridge. From Olds Sation south to and including the parallel Wenatchee River Bridges, old US 2 remained part of the state highway system as (unposted) Spur US 2. Former US 2 thru Wenatchee proper was dropped from the state highway system. SR 28 was extended north via former US 2 from East Wenatchee to the eastern US 2 approach to the new bridge. Former US 2 in the Wenatchee-East Wenatchee area was reposted as Business US 2, overlapping SR 28 from East Wenatchee north. The local governments did not want to maintain a major bridge so the 1950 bridge was added back to the state highway system in 1977.

Effective April 1, 1992, SR 285 was extended from the west end of the 1950 bridge via the city of Wenatchee to Olds Station. SR 285 passes west of downtown Wenatchee via the Mission St/Chelan Ave one way couplet. Former US 2 and Business US 2 had followed Wenatchee Ave thru the heart of downtown. North of downtown, SR 285 returns to Wenatchee Ave and heads north along former US 2 to the Wenatchee River. Unposted US 2 Spur was redesignated as the north end of SR 285. About the time that the SR 285 extension thru Wenatchee was posted as such, the Business US 2 signs in the Wenatchee-East Wenatchee area were removed. Today, SR 285 is 5.04 miles long.