After ‘a long time,’ this WSDOT megaproject in Pierce County is nearly finished

Construction of a new section of toll road between Puyallup and the Port of Tacoma is in the final stretch.

Local and state leaders and transportation officials broke ground on the final 2.6 miles of the State Route 167 Completion Project during a ceremony in Fife on Wednesday.

When open to the public in September 2029, the extension will allow commuters and truck drivers to travel the full six miles of expressway, the Washington Department of Transportation (WSDOT) said in a statement.

“This is the beginning of the end, but in a good way,” John White, WSDOT’s assistant secretary for urban mobility access and megaprograms, told the audience of roughly 75 people, who sat under a large tent in front of construction equipment and large piles of dirt.

Construction of the new expressway is happening in four stages, according to WSDOT. The most recent section, set to open in September, will connect a two-mile stretch between I-5 and State Route 509.

Crews previously built a bridge between Wapoto Way East and State Route 99, which opened to traffic in 2021, and are in the process of widening a section of expressway that will open by 2029, WSDOT said. The project began in 2019, the department said.

At the ceremony, White and other officials touted the project’s reduction of truck traffic on local streets, economic benefits to the port and surrounding communities, and wetland and land restoration projects.

“This project is not just about moving people; it’s about connecting people”, said Fife Mayor Kim Roscoe, who highlighted the project’s benefits to shipping, reduced commuting times and economic development.

Puyallup Tribe of Indians Chairman Bill Sterud noted that the extension, which crosses tribal land, will include his people’s art and language, including the name, the spuyaləpabš Trail.

“This will help ensure people who come here will understand the traditional homelands of the Puyallup people,” he said.

After several other speeches, including from Washington state transportation secretary Julie Meredith, Puyallup mayor Ned Witting, Pierce County executive Ryan Mello and Washington state Rep. Jake Fey, groups took turns being photographed dumping dirt from a pile with gold shovels.

The SR-167 extension is part of the massive Puget Sound Gateway project, a nearly $3 billion undertaking that will connect I-5 to the ports of Tacoma and Seattle and Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. It also includes the SR-509 completion project in King County.

During his speech, Sterud called the final phase of the extension an “important milestone” and joked that he was ready for the road to open.

“The Puyallup Tribe has been here since time immemorial, so we are used to waiting,” Sterud said. “But dang, it’s taking a long time.”