The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) in the US is set to open the second flyover ramp between Interstate 5 (I-5) and State Route 18 (SR18) on 23 July 2012.

The second flyover ramp will direct vehicles from the eastbound SR 18 to northbound I-5, while the first flyover, opened on 16 July 2012, guides vehicles from westbound SR 18 to southbound I-5.

The ramps are part of a $112m project at the I-5/SR 18/State Route 161 interchange and will allow free movement of vehicles from one highway to the other, eliminating merging and lane changing at different speeds.

WSDOT project engineer Aleta Borschowa said the interchange is very busy with semi-trucks, box trucks, minivans and passenger vehicles all jockeying for position, trying to navigate through signals and then rapidly getting up to freeway speed.

"This new interchange gives drivers enough sight distance and acceleration space to enter the highway safely," Borschowa added.

The area is a key corridor for Pacific Northwest businesses and for trucks transporting freight to and from the Kent / Auburn industrial complex to points north, south and west.

WSDOT financed the project with federal funds, as well as the 2003 and 2005 state gas-tax funding packages.