Rendering courtesy of Washington DOT

A rendering of the new SR 167/I-5 interchange to be built in place of the now-closed 70th Avenue East Bridge in Fife, Wash.

The future 6-mi. State Route 167 Expressway in north Pierce County is one step closer to completion as the Washington State Department of Transportation awarded the third of four contracts to build the tolled expressway.

Photo courtesy of Washington DOT

The contract was awarded to Guy F. Atkinson Inc. on Aug. 29, 2024, for $177.7 million, $8.7 million below the WSDOT engineering estimate. This is the third SR 167 project contract awarded to Atkinson.

"Atkinson has been a great partner for us on previous stages of construction," Puget Sound Gateway Program Administrator John White said. "We look forward to continuing to work together to build the new expressway and multi-modal improvements that will provide all travelers with more options."

In the third phase, Atkinson crews will widen SR 167 from SR 161/North Meridian Avenue in Puyallup to SR 410 near Sumner. Construction is set to begin in 2025 and finish in 2027. Work includes:

• A new diverging diamond interchange at SR 161/North Meridian Avenue
• A new bridge over SR 161/North Meridian Avenue
• A new bridge over Milwaukee Avenue East
• Construction of a portion of the 12-mile spuyaləpabš Trail (formerly known as the Tacoma to Puyallup Regional Trail).
• Demolishing the old Puyallup River steel truss bridge and preserving a portion of it as a heritage marker along the spuyaləpabš Trail
• New ramp meters at the East Pioneer on-ramps to SR 512

Work also includes building a portion of the embankment for the last section of the expressway that will be built in the fourth and final stage. The SR 167 Completion Project is part of WSDOT's Puget Sound Gateway Program, which includes the SR 509 Completion Project in southern King County. Combined, the two completion projects finish critical missing links in Washington's highway and freight network.

Final Stage to Come

The fourth stage will build the remaining 2.6 mi. of the expressway from I-5 in Fife to SR 161/North Meridian Avenue. Besides widening, this stage completes several multi-modal components, including trail connections. It also reconfigures local roads and intersections, builds eight new bridges and restores approximately 90 acres of wetlands.

WSDOT plans to award the last construction contract for the SR 167 Completion Project in the summer of 2025. This stage is scheduled to wrap up in 2029.

Work Completed, Ongoing

The first stage of construction built the Wapato Way East bridge over I-5 at the Fife curve. The bridge opened to traffic in 2021.

The second major stage began construction in 2022. Crews are building a 3-mi. expressway section between I-5 and SR 509 near the Port of Tacoma. This stage includes 20 new bridges; new on-and off-ramps to connect I-5 and SR 167; and a significant wetland and creek restoration program. This stage should be completed in 2026.

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