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State Route 167 (Washington)
Encyclopedia
State Route 167, commonly known as the Valley Freeway, is a state highway
in the U.S. state
of Washington. It connects Interstate 5 in Tacoma
with Interstate 405
in Renton
, and is 28.6 miles (46 km) long.
along the Puyallup River
's south bank into Puyallup
. SR 167 crosses the Puyallup River. Just north of the river, SR 167 turns east onto a freeway at a partial interchange. SR 167 begins a brief concurrency with SR 161
at this interchange. The freeway continues east towards Sumner
. SR 161 leaves SR 167 at an interchange with State Route 512
, which goes south. SR 167 continues east and meets State Route 410
at an interchange. The highway then turns north, and has a large interchange with State Route 18
in Auburn
near The SuperMall of the Great Northwest. North of Auburn, the freeway has high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes. These HOV lanes were converted to high-occupancy toll (HOT) lanes on May 3, 2008 as a pilot project.
State Route 167 then continues north passing through the city of Kent
before reaching Interstate 405
in Renton
. An overloaded interchange with I-405 results in routine backups on I-405 as far as Tukwila
to the west and the Kennydale Hill to the north. A flyover ramp completed in 2003 has improved the situation, but a more comprehensive solution is being planned as part of I-405 widening. SR 167 ends just north of Interstate 405, at State Route 900
in Renton.
in 1937.
When Washington's current numbering system was developed with the 1964 renumbering, State Route 167 followed what is now State Route 164 from Enumclaw
to Auburn before turning north towards Renton and Seattle. What is now SR 167 between Tacoma and Auburn was numbered SR 410 between Tacoma and Sumner, and State Route 163 between Sumner and Auburn. These highways were renumbered to their current designations in 1973. The highway between Renton and Seattle was removed from the state highway system in 1991, although the law did not take effect until April 1, 1992.
to a freeway. WSDOT is performing advance design and engineering work. The proposed highway would bypass the snarled traffic at Meridian Way in Puyallup and continue across Interstate 5 to SR 509
in the city of Fife
. The project would construct a new six mile (10 km) freeway north of the Puyallup River and complete the partial interchange at Meridian Way (SR 161). The new freeway would be four lanes with adequate space for future HOV lanes. The interchange with I-5 would have direct access HOV ramps. The upgraded SR 167 would save time travelling from Tacoma to Puyallup, as the original highway is just a four-lane road with at-grade intersections and a speed limit of 50 mi/h. It would also, in theory, complete the gap of a bypass to I-5 between Renton and Tacoma. SR 512 currently provides a freeway bypass of I-5 between Puyallup and Tacoma.
State highway
State highway, state road or state route can refer to one of three related concepts, two of them related to a state or provincial government in a country that is divided into states or provinces :#A...
in the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Washington. It connects Interstate 5 in Tacoma
Tacoma, Washington
Tacoma is a mid-sized urban port city and the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. The city is on Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, northeast of the state capital, Olympia, and northwest of Mount Rainier National Park. The population was 198,397, according to...
with Interstate 405
Interstate 405 (Washington)
Interstate 405 in Washington is a stretch of freeway that bypasses Seattle east of Lake Washington. The northern terminus is in Lynnwood and the southern terminus is in Tukwila...
in Renton
Renton, Washington
Renton is an Eastside edge city in King County, Washington, United States. Situated 11 miles southeast of Seattle, Washington, Renton straddles the southeast shore of Lake Washington. Founded in the 1860s, Renton became a supply town for the Newcastle coal fields...
, and is 28.6 miles (46 km) long.
Route description
SR 167 runs east as a four-lane divided (only by a left-turn lane) highway from Interstate 5 in TacomaTacoma, Washington
Tacoma is a mid-sized urban port city and the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. The city is on Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, northeast of the state capital, Olympia, and northwest of Mount Rainier National Park. The population was 198,397, according to...
along the Puyallup River
Puyallup River
The Puyallup River is a river in the U.S. state of Washington. About long, it is formed by glaciers on the west side of Mount Rainier. It flows generally northwest, emptying into Commencement Bay, part of Puget Sound...
's south bank into Puyallup
Puyallup, Washington
Puyallup, Washington is a city in Pierce County, Washington about five miles east of Tacoma. The population was 37,022 at the 2010 Census. Named after the Puyallup Tribe of Native Americans, Puyallup means "the generous people."-History:...
. SR 167 crosses the Puyallup River. Just north of the river, SR 167 turns east onto a freeway at a partial interchange. SR 167 begins a brief concurrency with SR 161
Washington State Route 161
State Route 161, known as Enchanted Parkway within King County and as Meridian within most of Pierce County, is a numbered state highway in the state of Washington, U.S.A...
at this interchange. The freeway continues east towards Sumner
Sumner, Washington
Sumner is a city in northern Pierce County, Washington, United States. The population was 9,451 at the 2010 census. Nearby cities include Puyallup to the west, Auburn to the north, and Enumclaw to the east.-History:...
. SR 161 leaves SR 167 at an interchange with State Route 512
State Route 512 (Washington)
State Route 512 is a long state-maintained freeway serving southern Pierce County in the U.S. state of Washington. The freeway begins at a partial cloverleaf interchange with in Lakewood and travels east past in Parkland and a concurrency with to a trumpet interchange with and...
, which goes south. SR 167 continues east and meets State Route 410
State Route 410 (Washington)
State Route 410 is a long state highway that traverses Pierce, King, and Yakima counties in the U.S. state of Washington. It begins at an interchange with SR 167 in Sumner and travels southeast across the Cascade Range to a junction with U.S. Route 12 in Naches...
at an interchange. The highway then turns north, and has a large interchange with State Route 18
State Route 18 (Washington)
State Route 18, also known as SR 18 or Highway 18, is a long state highway in the U.S. state of Washington, which connects State Route 99 in south King County with Interstate 90. It runs northeast from Federal Way, through Auburn, south Kent, Covington, Maple Valley, over the Tiger Summit, and...
in Auburn
Auburn, Washington
-Parks:Auburn has an extensive system of parks, open space and urban trails comprising 29 developed parks, 5 undeveloped sites under planning, 2 skate parks, 2 water roatary parks, and over of trails , and almost of open space for passive and active recreation.-Environmental Park:The Auburn...
near The SuperMall of the Great Northwest. North of Auburn, the freeway has high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes. These HOV lanes were converted to high-occupancy toll (HOT) lanes on May 3, 2008 as a pilot project.
State Route 167 then continues north passing through the city of Kent
Kent, Washington
Kent is a city located in King County, Washington, United States, and is the third largest city in King County and the sixth largest in the state. An outlying suburb of Seattle, Kent is also the corporate home for companies such as REI and Oberto Sausage...
before reaching Interstate 405
Interstate 405 (Washington)
Interstate 405 in Washington is a stretch of freeway that bypasses Seattle east of Lake Washington. The northern terminus is in Lynnwood and the southern terminus is in Tukwila...
in Renton
Renton, Washington
Renton is an Eastside edge city in King County, Washington, United States. Situated 11 miles southeast of Seattle, Washington, Renton straddles the southeast shore of Lake Washington. Founded in the 1860s, Renton became a supply town for the Newcastle coal fields...
. An overloaded interchange with I-405 results in routine backups on I-405 as far as Tukwila
Tukwila, Washington
Tukwila is a city in King County, Washington, United States. The northern edge of Tukwila borders the city of Seattle. The population was 19,107 at the 2010 census.-History:...
to the west and the Kennydale Hill to the north. A flyover ramp completed in 2003 has improved the situation, but a more comprehensive solution is being planned as part of I-405 widening. SR 167 ends just north of Interstate 405, at State Route 900
State Route 900 (Washington)
State Route 900 is a state highway in the state of Washington, USA, getting its number as the westernmost spur of Interstate 90. It extends 16.20 miles from I-5 in Tukwila east to I-90 in Issaquah.-Route description:...
in Renton.
History
Portions of State Route 167 were added to Washington's state highway system as early as 1913 as part of the Pacific Highway, although most of this was then deleted in 1923. The only portion kept was that between Auburn and Renton, which became part of State Road 5. The rest of the route (between Auburn and Tacoma) was added back to the state highway system two years later in 1925, also as a part of State Road 5. This route was extended north along Rainier Avenue into SeattleSeattle, Washington
Seattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country...
in 1937.
When Washington's current numbering system was developed with the 1964 renumbering, State Route 167 followed what is now State Route 164 from Enumclaw
Enumclaw, Washington
Enumclaw is a city in King County, Washington, United States. The population was 10,669 at the 2010 census.The Enumclaw Plateau, on which the city resides, was formed by a volcanic mudflow from Mount Rainier approximately 5,700 years ago....
to Auburn before turning north towards Renton and Seattle. What is now SR 167 between Tacoma and Auburn was numbered SR 410 between Tacoma and Sumner, and State Route 163 between Sumner and Auburn. These highways were renumbered to their current designations in 1973. The highway between Renton and Seattle was removed from the state highway system in 1991, although the law did not take effect until April 1, 1992.
Future developments
WSDOT plans to convert the entire route in Pierce CountyPierce County, Washington
right|thumb|[[Tacoma, Washington|Tacoma]] - Seat of Pierce CountyPierce County is the second most populous county in the U.S. state of Washington. Formed out of Thurston County on December 22, 1852, by the legislature of Oregon Territory...
to a freeway. WSDOT is performing advance design and engineering work. The proposed highway would bypass the snarled traffic at Meridian Way in Puyallup and continue across Interstate 5 to SR 509
State Route 509 (Washington)
State Route 509 is a state highway in the U.S. state of Washington. It extends just over 35 miles from Tacoma in the south to Seattle in the north.-Route description:...
in the city of Fife
Fife, Washington
Fife is a city in Pierce County, Washington, United States. The population was 9,173 at the 2010 census.-History:In 1940, it was described as "Fife...at a valley crossroads in the midst of a thickly settled berry growing and truck-gardening district is represented by a string of markets, taverns,...
. The project would construct a new six mile (10 km) freeway north of the Puyallup River and complete the partial interchange at Meridian Way (SR 161). The new freeway would be four lanes with adequate space for future HOV lanes. The interchange with I-5 would have direct access HOV ramps. The upgraded SR 167 would save time travelling from Tacoma to Puyallup, as the original highway is just a four-lane road with at-grade intersections and a speed limit of 50 mi/h. It would also, in theory, complete the gap of a bypass to I-5 between Renton and Tacoma. SR 512 currently provides a freeway bypass of I-5 between Puyallup and Tacoma.
Exit list
| County | Location | Mile | Destinations | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pierce | Tacoma | 0.00 | Tacoma | Southbound exit and northbound entrance |
| 0.00 | , Portland | Southbound exit and northbound entrance | ||
| Puyallup | 6.54 | South end of SR 161 overlap | ||
| South end of freeway | ||||
| 7.26 | North end of SR 161 overlap | |||
| 8.09 | Former US 410 | |||
| Sumner | 10.92 | 24th Street East, West Valley Highway | ||
| Pacific | 11.94 | 8th Street East - Pacific, Milton | ||
| King | Algona | 13.54 | Algona, Pacific | |
| Auburn | 15.13 | |||
| 15.61 | ||||
| 15.61 | Southbound exit and northbound entrance | |||
| 17.09 | 15th Street Northwest, West Valley Highway | |||
| Kent | 19.25 | South 277th Street | ||
| 20.92 | ||||
| 22.63 | 84th Street South, North Central Avenue | |||
| 23.72 | South 212th Street | |||
| 25.74 | South 180th Street, Southwest 43rd Street, East Valley Road, Southwest 41st Street | |||
| Renton | ||||
| 27.60 | ||||
| North end of freeway | ||||
| 27.80 | South Grady Way | |||
| 28.60 | ||||