Date:  Monday, March 02, 2009

Contact: Lloyd Brown, WSDOT Communications, 360-705-7075

FIFE – The Washington State Department of Transportation has determined that noise walls will not be included in the I-5 Port of Tacoma Road to King County Line HOV project scheduled to go to construction later this year. WSDOT arrived at this decision following several months of gathering and analyzing data gained through engineering, hydraulic, economic, environmental justice and visual quality studies, as well as by soliciting the affected community’s opinion.

“We followed a rigorous process in reaching this decision,” said Paula Hammond, Washington Transportation Secretary. “WSDOT’s noise walls are usually built along residential areas and those walls are welcomed by the community. This was a unique situation in which commercial and residential properties were located side-by-side, and the community expressed different views on their support for the walls.”

The two-year, $90 million I-5 Port of Tacoma to King County HOV project will widen I-5 to accommodate one northbound and one southbound high-occupancy-vehicle (HOV) lane in the Fife area, employing an estimated 350 jobs per year. When WSDOT adds a lane to a highway, the agency is required by federal statute in the form of the National Environmental Policy Act to consider the environmental consequences of that construction, which includes assessing noise impacts to residents within the project area.

“In order to make the right decision, we needed to listen to the community, consider the technical issues with noise walls, comply with federal guidelines, and make a reasoned decision based on the preponderance of our findings,” said Hammond. “We believe we did that in this situation.”

The I-5 Port of Tacoma Road to King County Line HOV project is part of the Tacoma/Pierce County HOV Program, which is a series of projects that will build 70 high occupancy vehicle (HOV) lane miles in Pierce County. More information about the program can be found at http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/projects/piercecountyhov/.

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