Pierce County to spend $670,000 to install traffic signal at this busy intersection

Q: What’s this I hear about a new traffic signal being installed in the Brookdale area of Pierce County?

A: It’s true, dear readers.

The county will spend $670,000 to rebuild the intersection of 38th Avenue East and 152nd Street East, just to the east of Naches Trail Elementary School.

The work was scheduled to begin Friday with a completion date in May 2020, according to a county news release. Expect crews from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday to Friday. Some lane restrictions might be necessary.

“During summer and fall, crews will install curbs, gutters, sidewalks, curb ramps and electrical infrastructure for the new signal,” the county reports. “The radii of the intersection will be increased to accommodate larger vehicles. Crews will also repave the intersection.”

The word “radii” sent us here at Traffic Q&A headquarters scrambling for the dictionary where we learned said term is the plural of “radius.”

Anyway, the county reports “work will be suspended from mid-October until April 2020 while traffic signal poles are being manufactured.”

Anne Radford is a public information specialist for Pierce County Planning and Public Works.

“This intersection was chosen based on the fact that it meets Traffic Signal Warrants,” Radford told us. “This designation means that a traffic signal is warranted based on several factors, such as traffic volumes on the main road and side street, peak hour volumes, eight-hour volumes, delay to side street traffic and crash history.”

According to county records, nearly 10,000 cars traverse that intersection each day.

Money for the project comes from traffic impact fees and Federal Highway Safety Improvement Funds, Radford said.

This story was originally published August 18, 2019 at 6:00 AM.