Thursday, October 1, 2026
A draft of the Regional Transportation Plan 2050 for Thurston County moved closer to being released for public review after clearing another hurdle in its path.
The Thurston Regional Planning Council (TRPC) unanimously endorsed releasing the plan for public review at its meeting on Friday, April 4.
“We’ve seen this a couple of times now,” said TRPC Chair Robin Vazquez of Lacey after the vote. “We’ve been talking about it for a while. … It’s just the next step.”
She added, “Hopefully, we can get a lot of feedback.”
The next stop for the transportation plan, which serves as a blueprint for the future of the region’s transportation system, is the Transportation Policy Board on Wednesday, April 9. The board must also sign off on the transportation plan before it is released to the public.
Staff will update the draft once the public comment period sunsets based on the feedback received, and later review comments and proposed changes with the Technical Advisory Committee, TPB and TRPC.
The plan is required to be updated every five years in alignment with federal and state requirements.
“It looks 25 years into the future, planning for population and employment growth, environmental stability, climate change, and the range of community transportation needs,” states a description of the plan.
The plan anticipates that Thurston County will have at least 106,000 more residents by 2050, which would be a 36 percent increase over 2022, and at least 58,000 more housing units, which would be a 47 percent increase over 2022.
The plan also anticipates at least 52,000 more jobs, which would be a 32 percent increase over 2022, and at least 52,000 people living near transit, which would be a 26 percent increase over 2022.
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johnvaneenwyk
This plan pushes a highway through LBA Woods, which will destroy that priceless resource that countless residents of the area love, protect, and enjoy. The highway will go from Herman at Wiggens to Log Cabin in Oympia, Westbound traffic will end up at the intersection of Log Cabin and North Avenues, creating enormous backups that will require widening Log Cabin, North Avenue and Caine through all the adjoining neighborhoods.
Sunday, April 13, 2025 Report this
johnvaneenwyk
Comment period ends May 9.
https://www.trpc.org
Sunday, April 13, 2025 Report this