Date:  Tuesday, July 26, 2011

Contact: Denys Tak, WSDOT Project Engineer, 1-800-545-1393 (Kelso)
Heidi Sause, WSDOT Communications, 360-905-2057 (Vancouver)

KELSO – After 18 months of closures, detours and delays, drivers will get to use the latest piece of the Longview Wye interchange overhaul tomorrow, July 27.

Wednesday morning, contractor crews with the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) will open the new southbound Interstate 5 on-ramp from eastbound State Route 432, bringing crucial safety and mobility benefits to more than 12,000 drivers each day.

The long-awaited ramp takes traffic headed for southbound I-5 up and over another major ramp on SR 432. The new I-5 on-ramp is also 1,000 feet longer and one lane wider than the old one, giving drivers more space to safely accelerate and merge into 70 mph interstate traffic.

“This ramp is a huge improvement over what we had before,” said Project Engineer Denys Tak. “It will provide a safe connection and seamless transition for drivers getting onto I-5 from SR 432.”

Though this ramp is complete, crews still have plenty of work to do at the interchange. A ramp connecting Talley Way to Carrolls and northbound I-5 is currently under construction and scheduled to open to traffic in early August. Crews are also building two additional ramps on the north side of SR 432, improving the connection between Old Highway 99 and SR 432, completing wetland work and planning final paving work.

The $35 million I-5, SR 432 Talley Way Interchange project is funded primarily through the 2005 gas tax, and is on schedule for completion in summer 2012.

View photos of project progress on the WSDOT Flickr site.

Stay up to date on construction and closures by visiting WSDOT’s travel alerts and construction update Web pages. 


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WSDOT keeps people, businesses and the economy moving by operating and improving the state's transportation systems. To learn more about what we're doing, go to www.wsdot.wa.gov/news/ for pictures, videos, news and blogs. Real time traffic information is available at www.wsdot.wa.gov/traffic or by dialing 511.

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