Auburn Way South between Hemlock Street Southeast on the west and Poplar Street to the east is a critical corridor — providing access to Auburn, Enumclaw, the Muckleshoot Reservation and Casino, its new hotel and conference center, Chinook Elementary School, the Auburn Transit Center, surrounding communities and numerous recreational amenities.

The corridor’s growing importance in recent years, however, has created its own problems, including heavy congestion owing to the limited number of lanes, the lack of sidewalks and pedestrian crossings, limited street lighting, unimproved transit stops for King County Metro and the Tribe, and issues for businesses.

Even the two-lane roundabout recently installed by the Auburn School District as part of the reconstruction of nearby Chinook Elementary School acts more like a single-lane roundabout because of the one entering in from the east and the one lane entering in from the west.

During an Auburn City Council study session at City Hall on March 24, senior project engineers Matt Larson and Jeff Bender presented a number of upcoming improvements to address these problems as found in the Auburn Way South Corridor Improvement Plan.

“It is an important infrastructure project that will significantly benefit Auburn,” Bender said. “It is a vital investment in safety, mobility, economic growth for our city, and aligns with City of Auburn values.”

Here is what’s coming:

• A realignment of Poplar Street;

• Two additional lanes to create a five-lane cross-section to improve traffic flow;

• New street lighting;

• New sidewalks, curbs, gutters and crossings to improve the plight of pedestrians;

• Enhancing the two present, unimproved shoulder bus stops with bus pullouts;

• Installing a rectangular rapid flashing beacons (RRFB) between the two bus stops adjacent to the existing Poplar Street alignment;

• Intermittent lights at center medians to control traffic movements; and

• New storm drainage and water mains.

The total project budget is about $13 million, and is supported by multiple funding sources and funding partners as follows: $1.3 million in city transportation funding and $2.4 million in water funding; federal grants channeled through the Puget Sound Regional Council; TIFE grants, Trust Fund loans/grant; and Tribal funds.

Bender said a number of “guiding and collaborative efforts” went into the project. The first is the State Route 164 route development, which was prepared by the Washington State Department of Transportation. This plan identified the need for corridor to widen from a three- lane to a five-lane cross section and identified the need for improvements to sidewalks and pedestrian crossings.

The second was collaborative effort between the City of Auburn and the Muckleshoot Tribe, which resulted in a memorandum of understanding between the two agencies and established a partnership to provide a non-motorized network, Bender said, “on, and along, and through the Auburn Way South corridor.”

According to Bender, Auburn’s Comprehensive Safety Action Plan designates this section of Auburn Way South as a “safety-emphasis corridor” because of the high number of serious injuries and fatalities that have happened there. The plan also outlines strategies to reduce serious injuries for all road users along the corridor, many of whom have been included in the project, Bender said.

The construction schedule is start this week, and completion is expected in summer of 2026, probably closer to spring 2026.

“This project represents a significant step toward enhancing safety, connectivity and infrastructure resilience in Auburn, and by addressing existing deficiencies and implementing strategic improvements, we are providing a more safe and more efficient corridor for all users,” Bender said.