The Washington State Department of Transportation will break ground Jan. 7 on a $184 million project that builds a new Interstate 5 / State Route 16 interchange in Tacoma.

“We’re not waiting until summer to get started on one of the biggest construction season ever for WSDOT,” said WSDOT project engineer Kevin Dayton in a statement.

According to Dayton, the project eliminates one of the worst bottlenecks in Pierce County. Backups develop due to the weave between southbound I-5 vehicles and northbound I-5 vehicles entering westbound SR 16 and exiting at Sprague Avenue.

“Separating these sets of vehicles on dedicated bridges with their own ramps to Sprague Avenue eliminates the conflicting movements, increases safety and relieves congestion,” said Dayton. Two new bridges — one for northbound I-5 traffic entering SR 16 and one for southbound I-5 traffic entering SR 16 — eliminate the weaving conflict. In addition, each bridge has its own off-ramp to Sprague Avenue.

“The Westbound Nalley Valley project continues our plan to improve highway safety and eliminate the remaining bottlenecks in the Tacoma-Pierce County area,” added WSDOT Secretary of Transportation Paula Hammond.

The ground-breaking ceremony Jan. 7 will be held at WSDOT’s Atkinson Staging Lot, 1907 South Tacoma Way at 10 a.m.

For more information on this project visit http://www.tacomatraffic.com .