Kennewick’s busiest intersection is getting a 10-month overhaul. Bring your patience

Annette Cary
Updated ·2 min read

Construction has started on a project that likely will disrupt traffic at Kennewick’s busiest intersection for the rest of the year.

But the result should be an intersection that traffic moves through more safely and more efficiently.

Now heavy use of the intersection at Gage Boulevard and Steptoe Street at the city’s boundary with south Richland leads to long lines of vehicles and long delays, particularly during the late afternoon commute.

It ranks number five among the city’s intersections for the number of crashes, according to Kennewick officials.

Plans call for widening the intersection using purchased right-of-way to upgrade turn lanes to dual left turn lanes and single right turn lanes in all directions.

Benton PUD employees start work Monday to relocate power poles at the southeast corner of the Steptoe Street and Gage Boulevard intersection as part of the first step of an improvement project of the busy roadway. Work will occur between the hours of 8:00am and 4:00pm and will require temporary single lane and sidewalk closures in the northbound lanes of Steptoe between Tucannon Avenue and Gage Boulevard. Drivers can expect delays and using an alternative route is recommended.

All corners of the intersection will be widened and new curbs, gutters, wider sidewalks, retaining walls and landscaping are planned.

Lighting and the traffic signals also will be improved.

Utility work will be done by Benton PUD and also by Cascade Natural Gas, which will take out its above-ground metering station in the northwest corer. Water utilities will be moved on the southwest corner of the intersection.

Access to business driveways is expected to remain available.

However, drivers just passing through may want to find alternate routes to avoid the intersection lane closures and delays during construction, say city officials.

Work started Monday to relocate power poles and install a related vault. The new poles should be installed on Sunday, with that first phase of work completed next week.

That utilities work will require temporary single lane and sidewalk closures northbound between Tucannon Avenue and Gage Boulevard, with traffic delays.

Then Apollo, the contractor on the project, will work on widening the southeast and southwest corners of the intersection through August.

From August to October work will focus on widening the northeast and northwest corners of the intersection.

Then Apollo will grind and overlay the intersection and do final work. The project is scheduled to be complete in January 2024.

Kennewick has begun construction to widen the North Steptoe Street and Gage Boulevard intersection, its busiest intersection.
Kennewick has begun construction to widen the North Steptoe Street and Gage Boulevard intersection, its busiest intersection.

Work hours for the project will be between 8 a.m. and 4 p.m. and 8 p.m. and 4 a.m., with temporary traffic and pedestrian delays or closures expected in those hours.

Improving the intersection will cost $3.8 million, including $330,000 for the project design, $400,000 for the purchase and related right-of-way work and $3.07 million for construction.

Now almost 25,000 vehicles travel through the intersection of Steptoe Street and Gage Boulevard each day, with 4,033 crossing the intersection at its peak late afternoon hour.

Northbound lanes on Steptoe are the busiest with 6,928 vehicles traveling the intersection daily. Eastbound is almost as busy with 6,862 vehicles, followed by 5,981 westbound vehicles and 4,775 southbound vehicles.

Kennewick plans to post weekly updates on progress at bit.ly/3UmYpVV.