60 mph speed limit returning to part of I-5 in Tacoma this week

TACOMA – By Friday, Dec. 20, the 50 mph speed limit in place for roughly eight miles of I-5 in Tacoma will be down to three miles.

The speed limit was reduced in April to 50 mph for an eight-mile stretch of northbound and southbound I-5 in Tacoma in response to an uptick in crashes around work zones.

Now that some of that construction work has wrapped, contractor crews working for the State Department of Transportation will move the signs designating the reduced speed zone section.

Once the signs are repositioned, roughly three miles along the I-5 – Portland Avenue to Port of Tacoma Road Southbound HOV project will remain at the reduced, 50 mph limit.

The rest of the interstate in this area will return to a 60 mph speed limit.

New reduced speed limit areas

Once major construction is complete, WSDOT expects to raise the speed limit back to its pre-construction 60 mph limit throughout the area.