A roundabout is headed for state Route 162 in East Pierce County, like it or not
Looks like a roundabout will be constructed on state Route 162 at 128th Street East, despite concerns from some people who live nearby.
The state and developers of the Tehaleh residential development have largely concluded that there will be a roundabout rather than the current traffic signal at the intersection.
“My understanding is they have made that decision, and we have moved forward with that for the last six months,” said Scott Jones, senior vice president of operations for Newland, the company developing Tehaleh. “My understanding is it’s a done deal.”
Maxine Herbert-Hill, her husband, Dave Hill, and neighbors formed a group called The SR 162 Community Group to fight the roundabout proposal. The group created a website, sr162traffic.org, and garnered more than 600 signatures on a petition asking the state to stop the roundabout proposal.
Herbert-Hill and others don’t believe a roundabout is a good idea. She said she believes free-flowing traffic from state Route 162 will make it next to impossible for vehicles trying to merge into the roundabout from 128th Street East.
“It’s going to be continual, non-stopping traffic,” she said. “It’s going to be a solid backup bumper to bumper, and people can’t get through, can’t even merge in.”
The Washington State Department of Transportation said roundabouts were found to be more efficient than traffic signals in a 2017 study.
“Roundabouts outperform signals in terms of reducing crash severity, improvements to how the intersection operates, reduces traffic queues and reduces long-term maintenance costs,” WSDOT spokesperson Cara Mitchell said.
There are no plans to abandon the roundabout proposed at Route 162 and 128th Street, Mitchell said.
“Everything we have put forward is that a roundabout works better than a signal,” she said.
On average, state Route 162 sees roughly 20,000 vehicles per day in both directions from the Route 410 interchange to Williams Boulevard in Orting, according to a WSDOT study. If no public transit added along that stretch, traffic could double by 2035, the study said.
Most of that increase stems from development to the east, like Tehaleh. Currently, there’s only one road out of Tehaleh, 198th Avenue East, through Bonney Lake.
The roundabout is part of a larger project to build a second road from Orting to Tehaleh and Bonney Lake, providing an alternative to 198th Avenue East, called Rhodes Lake Road East. Rhodes Lake Road will intersect Route 162 at the 128th Street intersection.
Newland has committed to providing at least $22 million to the project, Jones said.
WSDOT is reviewing the developer’s geometric design and “channelization plans,” which look at the lane configuration and dimensions for the roundabout, Mitchell said.
The next step would be to purchase right-of-way to build the roundabout. Mitchell estimates that would take about 18 months to complete.
Jones said the current timeline is dependent upon permits, but he hopes to start construction in 2023 and complete the overall project in 2024.
Signal vs. roundabout
State Route 162 is under WSDOT control, but in a Pierce County supplemental environmental impact study, the county concluded that signals were a better option.
Mitchell said the state is relying on its own study.
The state conducted a study in 2017 that included public comment and determined that roundabouts would be safer. According to WSDOT’s study, the number of crashes along Route 162 is expected to drop by 45 percent. Between 2011 and 2015, there were 409 crashes, 62 percent of which resulted in no injury, the study said.
“The study is there for a reason, and we are trying to make our decision based on data,” Mitchell said. “We want to be planning for the future (state Route) 162. It is terribly crowded, and it’s not performing the way it should because there are so many people on it.”
The community group is worried about the larger impacts of the roundabout. Nearby residents could be trapped in by the traffic, and farmers in the area who depend on produce stands would be financially crippled without stop-and-go traffic, Herbert-Hill said.
“One of the purposes of roundabouts and the beauty of roundabouts is it does not stop traffic. It just flows continuously,” Herbert-Hill said. “If you live on the south side of 128 Street, there is no break in that traffic and you cannot get in or out of your home.”
Herbert-Hill is also concerned about pedestrians on the Foothills Trail crossing the intersection. She believes that drivers will be too occupied with the multi-lane roundabout to pay attention to pedestrians.
The state responded by saying that roundabouts are safer for pedestrians because of the slower speeds drivers have to follow through the roundabouts than a normal signalized intersection.
Legislators like state Sen. Hans Zeiger (R-Puyallup) and Pierce County Council Vice Chair Dave Morell (R-Lake Tapps) have supported the residents.
Morell told The Puyallup Herald last year he doesn’t think roundabouts are right for the highway.
While Zeiger said he doesn’t have strong opinions about a traffic signal or roundabout, he does want constituents’ voices to be heard.
“It’s not about strong feelings about design features but about making sure that that (Environmental Impact Study) was taken into consideration,” Zeiger said. “I think when the citizens of a neighborhood have particular concerns, it’s important for the government to pay attention. I feel like WSDOT is not listening to these concerns.”
Sen. Hans Zeiger and other legislators from the area added language in the 2019 transportation budget bill that would require WSDOT to refer to the Pierce County study. Gov. Jay Inslee vetoed the bill.
Herbert-Hill said while the state and the developer believe the roundabout is a done deal, she intends to take the fight to the state legislature next year.
“ I don’t believe it’s a done deal,” she said. “They are moving ahead as though there won’t be changes, but we are going to try to challenge this.”
This story was originally published December 27, 2020 at 7:00 AM.
