More onramp meters on way for I-5, I-205

More onramp meters are coming to Clark County.

Starting Monday, Washington State Department of Transportation contractor crews began installing new ramp meters on Interstate 5 and Interstate 205. Construction is expected to be completed this fall.

The meters will be located at:

• Northbound I-5 onramp from Fourth Plain Boulevard.
• Southbound I-205 onramp from Northeast 134th Street.
• Southbound I-205 onramp from Northeast Padden Parkway.
• Southbound I-205 onramp from Northeast Fourth Plain Boulevard and state Highway 500.
• Southbound I-205 onramp from Northeast 18th Street.
• Southbound I-205 on-ramp from East Mill Plain Boulevard.

Although the first ramp meter in Clark County, located at the state Highway 14/I-5 onramp, was installed in the late 1990s, it wasn’t until 2020 that ramp meters became relatively common in Clark County.

Peak travel times on southbound I-5 from Main Street to Jantzen Beach were reduced by 11 minutes after the new ramp meters and variable speed signs were installed, according to the Regional Transportation Council’s 2022 Congestion Management Process Summary Report.

Although I-5 Bridge crossings decreased from 139,000 in 2019 to 132,000 in 2021, the new ramp meters on southbound I-5 served the same volume of traffic in 2022 as they did in 2019 between 5 and 9 a.m.

The report attributes the reduction to active traffic management strategies like ramp meters.

Ramp meters generally reduce collisions by 30 percent, according to WSDOT. Since the meters on I-5 have been installed, there has been a 12 percent reduction in total crashes and a 41 percent reduction in crashes between 6 and 9 a.m.

“Ramp meters prove to be an effective solution for peak travel times and during non-recurring congestion” like crashes, adverse weather and closures, said WSDOT Assistant Communications Manager Kelly Hanahan in a statement.

A new ramp meter was installed on state Highway 14 at Southeast 164th Avenue. It is expected to be operational in late 2023 or 2024.