Improvements Coming to Northbound I-5 between Everett and Marysville

First proposed in 2015, the state has a contractor to build a carpool lane on northbound Interstate 5 and redo the Highway 529 interchange in Marysville.  

"This work will improve mobility for highway users, ease congestion and provide more access to and from Marysville," Atkinson senior project manager Reffie Wagerman said in a news release. "We intend to build a project that meets the needs of the community, minimizes effects on travelers, and looks for efficiencies in design and construction to provide the best value for taxpayers." 

The project has three parts: 

- Extending the northbound high occupancy vehicle (HOV) lane from U.S. 2 in Everett to south of Highway 529 in Marysville;
- A northbound ramp from I-5 to Highway 529; and...
- A ramp from Highway 529 to southbound I-5

Marysville Major Jon Nehring credited state Rep. Emily Wicks, and state Sens. Marko Liias and June Robinson for the project's full funding. 

"To take that to the back of the line would have been devastating regionally," he said. 

Extending the HOV lane north could help some of the estimated 66,000 daily commuters cruise past the backups that form at the U.S. 2 interchange, the off-ramp to Marine View Drive, and across the Snohomish River Bridge. Nearly 25% of those northbound vehicles could use the HOV lane, according to state data. 

Crews will make the existing three general-purpose lanes smaller and move them to the right, and restripe the roadway to add the HOV lane. Shoulders on both sides of I-5 will be more narrow. 

Currently, there is no southbound access to I-5 from Highway 529, also known as State Avenue through Marysville. Instead, drivers can get to the freeway from Fourth Street which takes them across the train tracks. When freight rolls through, it can hold up traffic for minutes at a time. 

This project will begin at some point in the next year and will cost taxpayers $123.1 million.