Traffic

State prepares for first-ever diverging diamond interchange in Lacey

Residents urged to stay away from Marvin Road, I-5

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LACEY –– Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) is opening the state's first-ever diverging diamond interchange in Lacey next month, a project intended to improve travel and safety. 

A diverging diamond interchange allows free-flowing turns when entering and exiting an interstate. It encourages easy navigation, eliminates last-minute lane changes, and provides better sight distance at turns, which results in fewer crashes. Diverging diamond interchanges, functional in a lot of states, follow the same rules like stopping at a red traffic signal, going on the green, and following the signs and lines. To understand how the interchange works, those driving around the Thurston County area must watch this video.

To transform this interchange, the residents of Lacey and frequent travelers around the area can expect few delays as WSDOT will close the Marvin Road overpass, along with the adjacent I-5 off-ramps and on-ramps during the last weekend in July. The closures are scheduled for 9 p.m. Friday, July 31, through 5 a.m. Monday, Aug. 3, and includes Marvin Road overpass between Quinault Drive Northeast and Main Street Northeast, both Marvin Road on-ramps to southbound I-5 and northbound I-5 and northbound and southbound I-5 exits to Marvin Road.

The first phase of the construction plan is to demolish a segment of the overpass so the working crew can later widen it. During this first phase, which will continue into the first of the year, Marvin Road will remain open to motorists. To ensure the safety of motorists during the ongoing demolition, WSDOT will reduce I-5 traffic and detour one lane through Marvin Road Interchange. The crew will carry out this work during night hours when traffic volumes are lighter. Motorists, however, should expect closures and narrowed lanes. Pedestrian and bicycle access will remain open. Work after the first of the year will require a temporary, long-term change for southbound I-5 drivers turning left (southbound) onto Marvin Road. Those drivers will be detoured via Hogum Bay Road Northeast, Willamette Drive Northeast, and Marvin Road. WSDOT will also promote the Nisqually exit as an alternate route. The detour will allow the crew to rebuild the southbound I-5 exit to Marvin Road.

Although the interchange is set to re-open on August 3, passengers across the interchange can expect reduced lanes in both directions of the overpass, and congestion in both directions. Travelers will be guided through the interchange with proper signs and pavement markings, traffic safety drums (orange barrels) will surround smaller work zones near lanes as crews build raised concrete islands, and temporary traffic signals strung by wires over the roadway will keep travelers moving as crews continue their work. The crew towards the end of the project will sequentially swap temporary traffic signals with permanent equipment. 

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This story has been updated to include a subheadline.

Lacey, diverging diamond interchange, Washington State Department of Transportation

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