Winter weather should have little impact.

After Mother Nature wreaked havoc last December, the Bremerton tunnel project should be relatively safe and sound this winter as it moves closer to completion.

The actual tunnel itself was expected to be completed earlier this week and the last retaining wall for the project is slated to be finished by the end of November, Washington State Department of Transportation Project Engineer Brendan Clarke said.

“This winter we’ll be doing a lot of work inside the tunnel, pulling in wire and things like that,” Clarke said.

Work also should begin on the ferry plaza, so the weather shouldn’t have much of an impact on the project’s schedule like it did last year, he said.

Other than the slight cost increase caused by the discovery of more contaminated soil than expected, the project remains for the most part on time and on budget, he said.

“Things are going pretty good right now,” he said.

The traffic detours around the tunnel construction zone should remain the same for the remainder of the project as well, he said.

With the abundance of good news, Clarke said the tunnel won’t be opened earlier than expected, but it will be finished by next summer.