Representatives of the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT), City of Bonney Lake, 31st Legislative District, Governor Gregoire’s office, and J.R. Hayes & Sons, Electric Inc. Wednesday marked the end of a $18.4 million project to widen 1.49 miles of roadway on State Route 410. According to WSDOT officials, the area around Bonney Lake and east Pierce County has developed tremendously in the last 10 years, resulting in traffic volumes on SR 410 that surpassed the capacity of the two-lane roadway and reduced mobility and safety. The completed project adds one lane in each direction of SR 410, between milepost 15.61 to 17.10, with a raised median separating the eastbound and westbound traffic between 214th and 234th avenues. WSDOT worked with the City of Bonney Lake to plan three future median access breaks within the project limits. A new traffic signal and revised traffic movements at the split intersection of 233rd Avenue East and 234th Avenue East also aims to improve safety and mobility. This projects also adds stormwater treatment facilities, lighting at the traffic signals and bus stop improvements.

According to WSDOT officials, the project had two major benefits: Increased Safety — The intersection of 233rd and 234th Avenue is currently identified as a high accident location. This project improves safety by  installing a traffic signal along with rearranging the traffic movements. The traffic volumes for this area are so high there are very few gaps in the traffic flow to make left turns, which causes many people to make risky maneuvers — leading to collisions; Reduced Congestion — By adding one lane in each direction and restricting left turns to intersections with designated turn lanes, the movement for mainline SR 410 will improve significantly.

Construction began in March 2010 and was funded through a variety of sources: 2005 Gas Tax (Partnership Funding) — $8,660,751; 2003 Gas Tax (Nickel Funding) — $5,987,013; Existing Funds — $2,592,910; Other Funds — $1,199,933: Murray Hill ($60,522); Parker Pacific ($6,290); Pettitt LLC ($23,220); Foothills Estates ($5,000), Hahto Addition ($51,350), Quadrant Corp ($10,264), Home Depot ($184,000), T&S Properties ($359,960), Harborstone Credit Union ($16,576); Panorama West ($18,233); Mazatlan Restaurant ($20,900); Bonney Lake Marketplace Developers, LLC ($166,667); Montplainnes Rainier ($5,700); Auburn Com. Dev. ($80,000); City of Tacoma ($124,054); and Valley Water District ($62,668).