Three decades in the making: WSDOT to complete North Spokane Corridor by 2030

(The Center Square) – After almost three decades of construction and more than 50 years of planning before that, Washington is gearing up to complete the $1.5 billion North Spokane Corridor project by 2030. 

Once complete, the 10.5-mile-long corridor will connect Interstate 90 with U.S. Route 2 and U.S. Route 395. Construction crews first broke ground in 2001, but the idea started all the back in 1946, hitting several roadblocks until the state approved funding in 2000. 

On Thursday, several Washington State Department of Transportation representatives updated the Spokane City Council about the project. NSC Project Engineer Terrence Lynch said a few projects are left, but seven miles are complete, and there are about three and a half to go. 

“[If] we can keep our schedule on this, and there’s a lot of if that goes with that because a lot of risk with a project of this magnitude,” Lynch said, “we should have the North Spokane Corridor completed by the end of 2030.”

He reiterated the plan after much delight from Council President Betsy Wilkerson in finally wrapping up the project, though he said WSDOT is “hopeful” they’ll complete it by then. 

Spokane saw the first 3.5-mile section open in 2009, expanding to 5.5 miles by 2012 and the current mark of seven in 2023. Lynch called the NSC a “mega” and “legacy” project that requires input from all stakeholders, especially the city, noting “it takes a village.”

Much of the project required cutting through various communities and neighborhoods to speed up the drive time through the area. Lynch said that WSDOT convenes regular meetings with the city, its planning and engineering staff, other departments and those impacted residents.

WSDOT engaged with the locals to reroute walking trails, pedestrian bridges, parks and other infrastructure, ensuring the project is multi-modal. The design aligns with others in Spokane that aim to boost pedestrian and bike traffic to mitigate a rise in accidents leading to injury or death.

“We did hire an urban design team to help us because, as you know, we get stuck in our boxes as engineers,” Lynch said, “... we really want to make sure we have the right people looking at our designs, and maybe there’s other opportunities.” 

WSDOT Regional Administrator Charlene Kay said this project has a sustainable maintenance plan, unlike the original interstate system, which promised similar architectural features without long-term funding for upkeep. 

She said the sustainable "place-keeping plan” will provide that funding with revenue retained by Spokane from WSDOT leasing the land. It’s a pilot program that’s the first of its kind in the state but intends to provide a sustainable revenue stream for maintenance and other upgrades.

“The North Spokane Corridor truly is a catalyst project, not just in the work that we’re doing with WSDOT, but many of the projects that you all have funded or pursued are the result of the community engagement that your staff have participated in," Kay said.

WSDOT will continue to host regular community engagement events on the third Wednesday of each month from now into 2025.