Gov. Jay Inslee, accompanied by a host of local leaders and partners including Port of Vancouver USA CEO Todd Coleman, stood atop the Evergreen Boulevard bridge over Interstate 5 on Friday, March 27. The governor was in Vancouver for multiple reasons, and during his stop at I-5 he spoke with officials about two projects that could be game changers for the movement of commerce in Vancouver.

Both projects are included in the Senate’s proposed transportation package. The first project would improve the dated interchange at I-5 and Mill Plain Boulevard (State Route 501). The second would address substandard intersections along the heavily traveled Mill Plain corridor, making a smoother, safer and simpler commute for residential and commercial traffic.
The I-5/Mill Plain interchange serves as the entrance to the city of Vancouver and is a key link in our community’s ability to move freight along a global transit route. The interchange will also serve as the entrance to Vancouver’s developing waterfront.

The interchange was last updated more than 30 years ago, in the 1980s. Today, it presents a slew of problems for modern traffic trying to access the interstate. These include short sight and weaving distance from the on-ramp to the interstate and extremely tight turns for traffic entering and exiting I-5. Additionally, nearby intersections on Mill Plain at Main, Broadway and C streets don’t meet standards for commercial traffic and act as a pinch point in the global transit route that includes our region’s interstate system.

Low utility lines and areas of raised pavement at these antiquated intersections make it difficult for oversize loads, such as wind turbines, to move from the port to I-5 so they can reach markets in the U.S. and Canada. The two proposed projects will help improve safety and traffic flow at the I-5/Mill Plain interchange and along Mill Plain, and will ensure capacity on this critical freight corridor to and from the port.

That capacity may be in demand very soon. Traffic on I-5 at the Interstate Bridge has increased by nearly six percent over the last five years. The bridge is now accommodating more than 130,000 daily drivers, many from Vancouver’s neighborhoods and centers of commerce, including the port. Moving forward with these two proposed projects will help keep commerce flowing to and from Vancouver and address increased traffic as Vancouver and Clark County continue to be among the fastest-growing areas in the state.