Metropolitan King County Council 516 Third Ave., Rm. 1200 Seattle, WA 98104 Phone: 206-296-1000 Toll Free: 800-325-6165 TTY/TDD: 206-296-1024 Fax: 206-296-0198 council@kingcounty.gov
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Feb. 1, 2007 Patterson and Dunn: Let’s Get Renton Moving AgainSR-167 and I-405 tops list for worst chokepoint in the state - Renton Chokepoint Slated for Major Improvement Metropolitan King County Councilmembers Julia Patterson and Reagan Dunn today announced that improvements to the interchange at I-405 and SR 167 will be included in the regional transportation improvement plan that will go before voters this November.
This interchange is considered the most congested in the state by transportation officials. Interchange improvements were recently added to a major road investment plan that is being developed by local officials to reduce congestion on major highways in King, Pierce and Snohomish Counties.
“Renton residents know all too well that the 167/405 interchange is a major chokepoint that creates needless congestion up and down both freeways,” said Patterson. “This congested interchange chokes off commerce and mobility in and out of Renton – impacting our economy, commuters and small businesses.”
“Not only is the interchange the most congested spot in the entire state but the Washington State Department of Transportation now says that it is getting more congested faster than any other spot as well,” said Dunn.
The improvements to the 167/405 interchange will include construction of a direct connection between the northbound and southbound HOV lanes on 167 and those on 405. Today, vehicles and buses heading northbound on 167 or southbound on 405 in the HOV lane are forced to weave across general purpose lanes to exit. This backs up both freeways for miles around the interchange and creates a bottleneck for traffic heading into the city of Renton.
The construction of the direct HOV connection is anticipated to cost $380 million.
“The commute along I-405 between Renton and Bellevue has become the worst in the state,” said Patterson. “Reducing congestion in east and south King County is a top priority of the plan that will go to voters in November.”
“I-405 and SR 167 are fast becoming the most important freeways in the state. The volume of people and freight continues to increase rapidly along both corridors. We must act now to maintain our economy and our quality of life,” Dunn said.
Dunn and Patterson have also proposed approximately $1.2 billion of investment in the draft RTID plan to construct additional lanes on I-405 between I-90 and SR 169. This project builds off of state investments on I-405, which were funded by recent statewide gas tax increases. This project when coupled with the completion of HOV connections at the 167/405 interchange; will reduce the congestion along the 167 and 405 corridor between Puyallup and 520 by nearly 70,000 hours per day in 2020. Congestion is measured by the total length of time each person traveling the corridor experiences stop and go traffic.
The Regional Transportation Investment District (RTID) was formed with the goal to keep people and goods moving throughout the three-county Puget Sound region well into the 21st Century. Created by the Washington Legislature, RTID was charged with developing a proposal for improving transportation by focusing on the most highly congested highways and bridges in Snohomish, King and Pierce counties. The proposal will be submitted to voters in the fall of 2007, along with a companion transit investment package from Sound Transit.
Patterson is the Vice Chair of the Regional Transportation Investment District and Dunn serves as a member of its Executive Board.
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