The new 16-year transportation package means 100,000 jobs in Washington state, including many jobs and projects here in the 11th District.
Our local mega-project is $1.225 billion for the I-405 and I-167 interchange and corridor improvements, including widening from Renton to Lynnwood.
Another important local project is $7 million to start land acquisition and engineering work for an overpass over the train tracks at South Lander Street. This will reduce delays for drivers who get stuck whenever a train passes and improve safety for both drivers and pedestrians.
Here’s a good summary of major highway projects on the west side of Washington state:
- $1.875 billion for SR 167/509 Puget Sound Gateway — Project is designed to complete the long-planned SR 167 and SR 509 corridor, improve connections to I-5, relieve traffic congestion and improve freight mobility. This area is a critical are for the state’s economy as goods move to and from the Ports of Tacoma and Seattle, commuters utilize the route for daily commutes, and is a major north-south transportation corridor. The project includes two lanes in each direction and completing planned interchanges. It will connect SR 509 south from SeaTac to I-5 and align SR 167 between I-5 in Tacoma and SR 161.
- $1.6 billion for SR 520 Rest of the West — Includes a new Portage Bay Bridge, highway lids in Seattle’s Montlake and Roanoke neighborhoods, and the south half of a new west approach bridge. The project will result in safer and more reliable infrastructure for drivers and transit riders between Seattle and the Eastside and includes bicycle and pedestrian improvements along and across the highway.
- $494 million for I-5 Joint Base Lewis McChord corridor improvements — The JBLM project will relieve congestion through a variety of improvements to the JBLM area including adding one northbound lane from Mounts Road to Thorne Lane and one southbound lane from Thorne Lane to Steilacoom-Dupont Road; rebuilding three interchanges; building a new local connector road between Gravelly Lake Drive and Thorne Lane; and building a bicycle/pedestrian path along I-5.
- $1.225 billion for I-405 Renton to Bellevue corridor widening — Project adds one lane in each direction on I-405 between SR 169 in Renton and new 6th Street in Bellevue. I-405 is one of the most congested highways in Washington State. This project will improve traffic flow and safety by continuing investments that are occurring throughout the I-405 corridor from Renton to Lynnwood. It includes creating a two-lane express toll lane system that will connect with the express toll lane system planned to open next week from Bellevue to Lynnwood. It also includes construction of a direct connector on northbound and southbound lanes between SR 167 HOT and I-405 express toll lanes.
- $426 million for I-90 Snoqualmie Pass widening to Easton — Continues work on Snoqualmie Pass to increase safety, improve travel times and help get goods to our ports. Completes the widening from the end of the existing funded project (mile post 62) to Easton.
Statewide, the transportation package invests:
- $1.4 billion for critically needed maintenance and preservation work that will keep our roads and bridges safe to travel.
- $1 billion for transit, bicycle, and pedestrian projects – a record high investment by the state in multimodal transportation.
- $638 million to help cities and counties with local transportation projects.
- $602 million to improve reliability and efficiency on the Washington State Ferries.
- $220 million for the Washington State Patrol to keep our highways safe.
We also passed a number of reforms, including legislation and budget items to:
Fight congestion – For 25 years Washington has partnered with private sector employers to encourage commuters to use congestion-reducing forms of travel: carpooling, public transit, bicycling, walking, or telecommuting. This year we extended and expanded that program to continue fighting gridlock in our state. (HB 1822, included in package)
Promote green transportation – Cars that run on electricity and alternative fuels are better for the environment. To encourage the use of these modes of green transportation, we extended several tax credits for both commercial and personal vehicles. We also created a new Electrical Vehicle Infrastructure Bank, which will help develop a more extensive network of charging stations to make travel by electric vehicles simpler and more practical. (HB 1396; HB 2087, included in package)
Reduce pedestrian fatalities – Last year about 70 pedestrians were killed, and about 300 people were seriously injured, on Washington roadways. That number is unacceptably high, which is why we created the Pedestrian Safety Advisory Council to serve as a central, expert body dedicated making our communities safer for all users. (SB 5957)
Improve project design and delivery – This session we passed legislation encouraging two new practices to improve the way we deliver transportation projects. Design-build contracting will reduce the state’s liability risk on projects. Practical design will make sure projects focus on what the community actually needs, preventing overbuilding and saving taxpayer dollars. (HB 2012; SB 5997)