The Washington State Department of Transportation announced the advertisement this week to contractors a $90 million project that adds HOV lanes on I-5 in Pierce County.

The I-5, Port of Tacoma Road to King County Line HOV project, includes $47 million in American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) funds earmarked for construction, which is expected to support approximately 285 jobs.

The construction contract is scheduled to be awarded in early July, with construction expected to begin in early August.

According to WSDOT, the project will take two years to build. It extends the I-5 HOV system by more than three miles by widening the freeway in the median. The widening accommodates one northbound and one southbound HOV lane between the King County line and Port of Tacoma Road.

In addition to building HOV lanes, the project improves stormwater treatment systems and installs driver information systems such as closed-circuit TV cameras, electronic signs, highway advisory radio, and traffic data collectors.

The I-5: Port of Tacoma Road to King County Line HOV project is part of the Tacoma/Pierce County HOV Program, which is a series of projects to build 70 HOV lane miles in Pierce County. Overall, the Tacoma/Pierce County HOV Program has been allocated $70 million in ARRA funds. More information about the program can be found at http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/projects/piercecountyhov/ .