Major project coming to Capitol Way and Capitol Boulevard. Here’s the plan
Olympia has a longtime plan to reconfigure the lanes on Capitol Way to Capitol Boulevard, from near the Capitol Campus to Tumwater.
The $14 million project will bring bike lanes, crosswalks and more to the area, according to the city.
City Senior Engineer Joey Jones said the current concept extends from Union Avenue in Olympia all the way to Carlyon Avenue in Tumwater.
For that entire length, the city is planning to reduce the number of vehicle lanes. The road will go from four lanes, or two in each direction, to three lanes, or one in each direction with a center turn lane.
He said the city has done an analysis using a traffic model that indicates the lane reallocation can be accommodated with the current as well as future traffic volume predictions.
This reallocation will make room for bike lanes for the whole length of the road. In order to integrate those bike lanes, bus stop and crossing improvements also will be made.
Jones said the project is part of the city’s Transportation Master Plan. The city currently is undergoing a street resurfacing project, and that project lined up well to resurface and reconfigure the roadway at the same time.
“So this gives us kind of that, I guess you could say blank slate to implement that lane reallocation,” he said.
He said the plan is still in the concept phase, and staff are hoping to wrap up those efforts by the end of the year. Official design would start in 2026 and continue through 2027.
While that work is happening, staff will be applying for grants to fund the constriction, he said. If all goes well with those applications, construction would begin in 2028 and last until 2030.
Jones said the early preliminary cost is about $14 million. That price tag will show up in the 2026 preliminary Capital Facilities Plan as $4 million in local funds and hopefully $10 million in grant funding.
The city has heard from residents about the need for bike lanes in the area, and a concern about speeding, he said. The lane reconfiguration will help both, Jones said.
He said the public should keep an eye out for an open house to attend in December where residents can see the concepts and provide feedback to the city. The date has yet to be determined.
This story was originally published October 5, 2025 at 5:00 AM.
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