The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) held a groundbreaking ceremony in Fife Friday to mark the beginning of work on a project that builds the first I-5 HOV lanes in Pierce County.

Bellevue-based Tri-State Construction, Inc. and WSDOT begin work this week on the project, which was funded in part by the 2003 gas tax package. It also includes more than $35 million in funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). An estimated 130 jobs could be supported by the I-5 Port of Tacoma Road Interchange to King County Line HOV project.

“The federal stimulus funding allows us to preserve our aging infrastructure, get people to work and give our economy a jumpstart,” said Washington Transportation Secretary Paula Hammond. “Our state has been a national leader in terms of capitalizing on these funds and turning them into jobs.”

Initial work activities include restriping both directions of I-5 to create narrower lanes and shifting traffic toward the shoulders. This provides room for equipment and workers in the median. Night-time pile-driving also gets started right away. That work is noisy and is a visual distraction for drivers.

WSDOT continues to piece together a series of Tacoma-area improvement projects that include the new Tacoma Narrows Bridge, the widening and HOV lanes on State Route 16, the new northbound I-5 collector-distributor lanes between the Tacoma Mall and Tacoma Dome, and the ongoing work to replace the Nalley Valley Viaduct.

The full congestion-relief and safety benefits of these projects will not be fully realized until all the connecting projects are complete. More information about the program can be found at wsdot.wa.gov/projects/piercecountyhov/ .