Project overview
This project replaced the 1965 southbound I-5 Puyallup River Bridge. The new bridge is built to current seismic standards and is straighter and wider than the previous bridge.
The project also modified the Port of Tacoma Road on-ramp to southbound I-5, demolished the existing old I-5 bridges over the Puyallup River, demolished and rebuilt the East L Street overpass that crosses I-5, replaced existing concrete pavement from McKinley Avenue to Portland Avenue, upgraded signing, illumination, storm water collection facilities, and water quality treatment facilities.
Once finished, this project will open HOV lanes in both directions on I-5 from SR 16 in Tacoma to Fife.
What to expect
At 9 a.m. Sunday, Aug. 28, 2022, Guy F. Atkinson Construction crews opened the final 3-mile section of southbound Interstate 5 HOV lanes in Pierce County. The new lane connects the existing HOV lane running from Seattle to Fife with the one that stretches from Tacoma to westbound State Route 16 in Gig Harbor.
On Friday, Aug. 19, 2022, the new East L Street Bridge over I-5 reopened to travelers. The original bridge was removed so I-5 could be widened for HOV lanes.
As of Friday, April 1, 2022 all southbound travel lanes are on the new southbound I-5 Puyallup River Bridge. Five out of six new southbound lanes are open for travelers, including four general purpose lanes and an auxiliary lane.
This project built a new southbound I-5 Puyallup River Bridge, and a new East L Street bridge across all lanes of I-5 in Tacoma.
This project is part of the Tacoma/Pierce County HOV Program, a series of highway projects to provide operational improvements and high-occupancy-vehicle (HOV) lanes on Interstate 5 (I-5), State Route 16 (SR 16), and State Route 167 (SR 167). Through Tacoma, heavy I-5 traffic creates frequent congestion. HOV lanes will help ensure that transit, vanpools and carpools move efficiently through the corridor, especially when traffic is congested in the adjacent general-purpose lanes. This reliability tends to increase ridership in multi-passenger vehicles and thereby helps ease demand in the general-purpose lanes, making the overall highway system work better for everyone.
- In April 2010, the Washington State Department of Transportation issued a Determination of Non-Significance for this and two other HOV projects on I-5.
- The preliminary design for this project is complete in conjunction with the I-5 - Portland to Port of Tacoma Road - Northbound HOV project.
- WSDOT advertised a Request for Proposals for the final design and construction of the project in early 2018.
- WSDOT has executed a contract with Guy F. Atkinson Construction/Jacobs Engineering. Construction will begin February 2019.
- Project completion in 2022.
