Tacoma I-5 HOV Project

[jakeroot]

I've also seen some conflicting reporting that says that the Tacoma projects began as early as 1993. Time to go look up if there was a continuous span of construction going back 29 whole years.

My understanding: the S 19th St partial cloverleaf interchange was complete in the (edit) early 1990s, marking the completion of the freeway section of 16 in Tacoma. Before, there was a signal at 19th, but the rest of the freeway was finished in the late 80s. After this, there was no more construction in Tacoma. That would change by 2001, when WSDOT reconfigured the cloverleaf at I-5/S 38th St into a partial cloverleaf, which was completed by 2002. Around this time is when the whole series of project started (to rebuild 16, the Nalley Valley Viaduct, all of I-5, the dozen-plus overpasses, etc).

Edit (2): Hwy 16 was widened over Union beginning around 2000. This project may have started before the rebuild of the S 38th St interchange, but I'm not sure.

[stevashe]

A blissful few years of normalcy before the new SR 167 interchange is underway in Fife. I'll have to try the finished HOV lane out for myself when I leave for my trip in a few days.

I've also seen some conflicting reporting that says that the Tacoma projects began as early as 1993. Time to go look up if there was a continuous span of construction going back 29 whole years.

Uhh, about that... they've already put in place a small lane shift at the future SR 167 interchange, complete with a 50 mph curve warning in the northbound direction, so... the streak of continuous construction impacts continues!

It's possible that both timelines are correct, the HOV specific projects started in 2001, which is what the ~20-year timeframe refers to, but there may have been other non-HOV projects that started further back in 1993.