As the city of Auburn grows, so does the need for infrastructure to properly handle all the added traffic.

Which is exactly what city engineeers who planned the new traffic loop that connects South Division Street and A Street Southeast had in mind. By connecting South Division Street and A Street Southeast, city leaders say, they have given commuters a new option for heading onto southbound A Street, avoiding the busy intersection of Third Street altogether — and, it is hoped, any traffic and stress that come from rush-hour traffic.

Stress not at all helped by having to sit through a full cycle of traffic signals more than once, which is typical for commuters on Third Street, said Auburn Mayor Nancy Backus at the ribbon cutting Oct. 15 of the A Street loop project.

“This project I think is the perfect example of infrastructure improving our everyday lives, especially for the commuters along A Street and East Valley Highway, and you’ve seen many of them already going by today,” Backus said

Backus said the loop was constructed with downtown decorative standards, with standard street lighting, sidewalks, curbs and ramps and concrete crosswalks.

The funding includes $1.13 million in federal grants awarded to the Puget Sound Regional Council, $340,000 from Sound Transit traffic Impact mitigation payments associated with the construction of the Second Sound Transit garage that the city broke ground on two weeks ago, and $35,000 in city traffic impact fees, for a total project cost of $2.4 million just for that small stretch of road.

“None of this would have been possible if not for the valued partnership with Reed Trucking and Excavating,” Backus noted, adding that it also improves the route for King County Metro, MIT Transit and Pierce Transit.