No Immediate Improvements Coming to State Route 169 Intersection

In spite of a public outcry in 2007 against a proposed roundabout at the intersection of State Route 169 and S.E. 416th Street that promptly stopped the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) from pursuing it, the agency continued working on a solution to improve traffic safety at that site -- that is, until budget changes in 2009 shut down the project completely.

In a correspondence last week from Lorena Eng, Northwest Regional Administrator for the WSDOT to state Rep. Cathy Dahlquist, Eng recounted that the agency instead pursued a phased strategy that involved construction of a left turn channelization and also lowering the speed limit from 50 mph to 40 mph.

It got as far as installing the reduced speed limit signage and applied enhanced striping through the intersection before the 2008 transportation budget, which removed project funding that was to be saved for the 2017-2019 biennium and placed it instead into the 2009-2011 biennium budget with no appropriation in the 2007-2009 biennium, effectively halted the project. 

The following 2009 transportation budget then eliminated the project completely, according to Eng's letter to Dahlquist.

Serious Accidents Remain Rare

Without the improvements, the intersection has seen an average of three collisions per year between 2006 and 2010, on a stretch of highway that sees more than 8,000 vehicles a day, Eng told Patch. Excluding the , there was only one other serious injury collision in that time frame, she said.

In all, the numbers don't warrant a signal at that intersection, said Eng, as the WSDOT follows national standards set forth in the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD), which is used by all state transportation departments.  

"The manual specifies nine separate conditions that if one or more is met, may qualify an intersection for a traffic signal," Eng wrote in an email to Patch. "Satisfaction of one or more of the conditions does not necessarily require the installation of a signal. An engineering study is also needed to evaluate site-specific conditions."

Legislators Ask Questions

Numbers are one thing, but here in town, even one serious accident is too many. Both Dahlquist and state Sen. Pam Roach are trying to learn more about the status of the intersection and exploring what options might still be available to enhance safety at that location.

that Roach inquired about a possible traffic signal after hearing from constituents who thought something was getting installed in at the intersection. And according to Bobbi Cussins, spokesperson for Dahlquist, she has likewise requested information about the site, its history and safety statistics after citizens contacted her office wanting more information.

Dahlquist is meeting with Rep. Christopher Hurst next week about the issue, Cussins said.

No Revisiting Roundabout

Meanwhile, 120 people answered Patch's completely unscientific poll about whether they preferred a roundabout, a traffic signal, or no change at the intersection. The majority, or 67 of you, voted for the roundabout. 

If, indeed, the community changed its mind and now opted for the roundabout, the chances it will be funded any time soon is slim, according to Eng.

For this current biennium, which has been tight in and of itself, WSDOT evaluated data for more than 5,200 highway intersections across the state to identify priority locations for potential safety improvements, Eng wrote to Dahlquist. It then whittled that list down to 300, and the SR169/S.E. 416th Street intersection didn't make the cut.

Basically, "budgets are tight right now so the statewide list of intersections slated for improvements is pretty short," said Eng.